Digimon Gaurdians
by Stereophonic Hippo
Summary: A prologue to a Rewrite of Digimon Adventure 02, containing new characters and...stuff... Read and Review! PLEASE!
1. Part I Birth

Digimon Gaurdians

Age: Pending

Started: August 3, 2003

Finished: September 14, 2003 at PRECISELY 5:00 PM... hee hee!

Revised: June through December (8th) 2004

Rating revised: (March 04) Warning, this document encloses content not suitable for young children. This includes graphic, gorey violence, coarse adult launguage (which most is edited for the better mind of the reader), and -ahem- one sexual scene... I wrote this on a vent, so I had no control over what I wrote, so I apologize if there is anything I've missed. Thanks! (Scarfed Kai-kun/Stereophonic)

Note: November 04: Hello, It's me again, Stereo. I am 14 now and still love this story (and the universe that contains it). DC02 is a project, or projects, that have circled my mind for much too long. I'm attempting to revise this prologue to that story in hopes of getting others hooked.

Now, I apologize--a few scenes are either "under-cooked" or overdone. Back in 2003, my mind, so to speak, wasn't as developed as it is now. I had the... "thing" to put phrases in large capital letters, over and over. (example: "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!" could be done in a much more formal and dramatic way.)

I like this story. Its the age-old concept of losing innocence, sibling rivalry, family distance, et cetera. I hope you enjoy the story, whatever plot there is, and I seriously hope I haven't wasted my time for... more than a year.

Have fun, and don't sue me.

Sincerely:

S-T-E-R-E-0

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon, et cetera...

OKAY?! OO!

There I stood. My arms bleeding, my whole body was, standing on the water, even though I was nearly dead. I felt immense pain, but most of it was not on the exterior injuries, but in my heart. I stared up at my 'brother', who had done...so much... He had destroyed...destroyed many...including my...only friend...

"Give up..." He muttered, smiling at my pain. Hikari...Hikari was my friend...she was perhaps the most beautiful creature in the entire universe...and my... 'brother'...had thrown it all away for me...laughing...laughing at my pain...

This was merely enjoyable for him, my pain...

The water shone beneath us both, I was standing on it, he was flying. He had two wings of darkness, holding a dark, ebony scythe in his hands, which he had dubbed the 'Deathbringer', which was a perfect title.

"Face it, Kage," My brother, Yami, laughed again, holding his scythe to my head, "Hikari is dead, as are you."

I closed my eyes, and knew it was true. The power I had used to destroy the meteor that would have killed everyone made me become fully human, no longer with the Machina energy inside me...

I had given it all up...for nothing...Yami still stood, I didn't...It was over. I felt like crying, but I couldn't...no...Not in front of this killer, who was my own 'brother'.

"Why, Yami, why..." I sighed, staring down at the water as I collapsed, my legs no longer wanting to stand. Broken, completely broken.

"I need not answer to the likes of a foolish _human_," Yami sighed irritably, saying 'human' as if it were an infectious disease.

"Then kill me now..." I sighed, forcing a smile in my demise, but I had a plan. None the less, I had a plan.

"Fine then, _Kage..._" He lifted his scythe, and it came down to my head. I glanced up, and that was all I saw...the scythe, and the final piece...cutting straight through my head...

But, remember. I had a plan. Oh, yes...

I had a plan.

DIGIMON GAURDIANS

By: The Scarfed Kai-kun

Part I BIRTH

The busy city of Tokyo, Japan. The even busier roads into it. A boy with, oddly enough, short blue hair, cut down to his ears or so, stared blankly out the window of the family car, groaning quietly.

"We can hear you, Ken..." The obvious mother stared back at the two boys in the back seat, "...please, we've told you, Japan'll be fun! " The other one, older, having blue hair also-but shorter, and very spiky, stared at the younger one, whom we can dub 'Ken'.

"C'mon, bro," he sighed angrily, "stop it. Sure, this place isn't what we're used to, but deal with it already!" Ken sighed, and crashed his head on the window slightly.

"Osaaaaaaaaaaaaa-chan..." He sighed, barely making sense, as if he didn't like talking.

"Ken, what the HECK is wrong with you?!" 'Osa-chan', also whom we can dub 'Osamu', nearly screamed. The little brother stared at the fourteen year old,

"This place is creepy..." He muttered, having a suspicious look on his face, "...and you never know..." he glanced around nervously, "...what kinda CONSPIRACIES might be around here..."

"Ken...I hate, well, more like love, to admit it," Osamu sighed, pulling his brother's hair to grab his attention, "YOU ARE SUCH A FREAK!"

"Hey, SHUT UP! And let go of my hair!" Ken shook his head wildly, but his brother wouldn't let go,

"Admit it!"

"NO!"

"ADMIT IT!!" He grabbed another piece of hair and pulled, "ADMIT IT!!!!" Ken lifted a foot and drove it into the side of Osa-chan's face,

"NO!!" Osamu let go, and both returned to normal.

"Well..." The older one mumbled, "...at least I'm braver than you..." Ken overheard,

"EXCUSE ME?!" Osa-chan laughed,

"Yep, I'm afraid of nothing."

"Really?" Osamu nodded. The eleven-year-old thought a moment, then screamed,

"SOCK PUPPETS!!" The fourteen year old's eyes opened wide, then he began to scream,

"_AAAAAAH_! _WHERE ARE THEY_?!" Ken laughed, and the two got into yet another fight, constantly trying to get the other in a headlock.

"Ken, Osamu, _PLEASE!" _The father screeched, the car pulling to the side of the road, "Ken, what did your mom say about starting fights?!"

"But I-..."

"_WHAT DID SHE SAY?!" _The young one sighed, then stated blankly,

"I shouldn't start fights..."

"Why?!"

"......." He was silent, then smiled sweetly, "...Internet?"

The father sighed, Ken sitting happily, Osa-chan leering at him, the mom also beaming happily as the car started again and they continued the journey.

"That's my boy," she sighed.

"He gets that from you, doesn't he?!" The dad whispered, and the mother nodded nervously in response.

Far away in, surprisingly, another World, trouble was brewing...

A girl sat in the psychiatric ward of the Tokyo Mental Hospital. She was locked in a giant steel room, a desk in front of her, and a man on the other side of the desk. The man was obviously a doctor of sorts, and he had a notepad and pen in his hands, staring at the girl blankly.

"Alright, name?" The girl was silent. She had blue hair and vacant green eyes, looking as if she were asleep with her eyes open, not really focusing on anything.

"Name?!" The girl closed her eyes. "Look, just tell me your name..."

"...Sh...Shirubi...Karaki..." the man looked confused,

"Odd...on your file, it says your name's 'Tamazaki'..."

So, the traveling family finally got to their new home, an apartment building in a place called 'Highton View Terrace'. Ken sighed with apathy as he sat down on a couch the movers were carrying.

"Can't...you...do...anything...? We're...doin'...all...the...work!" Osamu strained to scream at his little brother as he carried a box, which was obviously heavy.

Ken sighed again, "I don't like it here."

"Shut up, 'ya little brat."

Again, another sigh. The movers set the couch down, and Ken stood up.

"Look, Osamu-chan, say it with me- I---DO---NOT---LIKE---THIS---PLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACE!!!! Oi."

The parents, older brother, and several movers stared at him.

"What? I liked where I was."

Ken's mom sighed and tried to reason with him, "Look, we've explained this before, your father got a new job. And so, since it was here, we had to move so he could be closer to his new job. Get it?"

More apathetic sighs. Following, he stormed into what would be his and Osamu's room.

"I had my own room at the old house..." He scowled as he flopped onto the floor. "Nothing about this place is very cool. I wish I could just go back home!" He noticed something sticking out of the closet, a jacket of sorts, he discovered as he opened the door.

"Maybe they left it here...when they moved out..." There was a parcel within the folded up jacket, a medium-sized package, looking like a big-shoes shoebox, and a letter tied to it. 'Well...got nothin' better to do...' He sighed, and opened the letter quietly, afraid of everyone hearing.

"What?!" He gasped, reading it, "...it....it's addressed to me!?"

_Dear Ken Miraki Ichijouji,_

_We don't have much time, but this is it:_

_We need your help, and we've heard of your skills as a...well...okay...but you're our only hope!_

"What..." Ken muttered, his heart nearly stopping as he read, "...only...hope..."

_You must save our World, the Dejitaru Sekai, from Millenniumon...or else...we'll be destroyed! Please..._

That was it, and blood covered the bottom of the paper, as he had just noticed.

"The...Digital World?..." He sighed, "...I wonder what's in this box..." He pryed it open, and inside was its contents:

Two odd-looking guns and a weird little computer device that fit in his palm.

"What...the...hell...?" He muttered, lifting the two guns out of the package gently, there was another note attached,

_Angel DIJIT Series Laser Pistols_

_Ammo clip must be replaced every 10, 000 shots_

_Please keep clean. We will not be held responsible for any deaths or injuries._

"Digit?" The two lasers had that written on the side (written D-I-J-I-T), and he was confused, staring at the contents of the mysterious box. "What the..." The jacket on the floor was then noticed, picking it up and putting it on...it was a bit big, but it was nice. Ken then observed the final piece of the contents of the box, a weird little device. Another note was attached to it:

_Alright. The only guidance we can give you is use this to Utilize the Gates. We can't tell you much more, but if you are indeed the one, perhaps you'll know. _

_Please...save our World..._

"Gates...?" He repeated, staring at the notes, guns, and device. (The jacket was too cool for words, though, not weird.) Suddenly, his brother burst into the room,

"AAAAAH! AH-eh?" He saw his brother standing nervously by the closet, wearing the jacket still and hiding the other contents of the mysterious box. "Ken...? What's wrong? You look...more nervous than usual..." Ken laughed slightly,

"Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha...funny. I'm fine...Fine! " Osa-chan stared, then flopped on the lower bunk of the bed, "Alright, I'm letting you off this time...I'm too tired to care."

"Huh?"

"Besides," he smiled slightly, "...I get to meet her tomorrow."

"Who? Oh...your girlfriend?!"

"NO! She's just...just..." he closed his eyes, "...a penpal. That's all..."

"Yah. And she just HAPPENS to be a girl, right?" Ken laughed, with a slight yawn.

"Hey, SHUT UP!" Osa screamed, throwing a shoe at his head.

So, the Ichijouji family had moved in, and all of them slept peacefully, Ken passed out on the floor.

Utilize the Gates? What did THAT mean?! Well, he'd soon find out...

"..uh…eh?" Ken woke up silently, glancing at the clock on the wall, 1 a.m. He heard something, but what? It seemed to be coming from the living room...

He stepped quietly, in fear of waking the members of his family. His dad's laptop was sitting ominously on the coffee table, the screen shining with a strange green glow.

"What..." He breathed, sitting at the couch, staring at the screen. He dared not to blink, staring straight into the screen, as if he were trying to see something...looking...

He heard something...voices...a scream...a knife stabbing into human flesh...a sword? Right into the abdomen of a human...

"Ken?" His eyes darted from the screen to see his brother standing next to him, "What're you doing?" The eleven-year-old was silent, then glancing back to the screen...the computer was off.

"Yo...go back to sleep already." Osamu grabbed him by the collar and shoved him into the room, where he then immediately then fell back to sleep.

'What was he doing...? How did he...?'

The next morning. Osamu was rushed to middle school, Ken left to dash recklessly to the somewhat nearby elementary. "Stu-pid...Osa-chan..." The parents were busy dropping him off, so Ken-chan was left to run like a maniac. Good thing he knew the way, at least. Oi.

"AHH! MISTER! WATCH OUT!" Too late, he'd ran straight into someone. Luckily, the man wasn't hurt, but Ken landed on the sidewalk with a loud _CRASH_.

"Gomenasai..." He muttered wearily, eyes out of focus and dazed from the fall, "...Are…you a-alright?" The man, pale and blue haired, stared at him blankly...but you could tell he was thinking...

"Uh..." Ken backed away, then glanced at his watch, "..DAMN!! AH! I'M LATE!!" He screeched, racing to get there. A woman strode up to the man he had crashed into, she wore a red dress and had silvery blue hair.

"Was that him?"

"I think so..."

The little maniac had made it to school, but was fifteen minutes late...

He was assigned detention, but that was it. Ken got no mercy for being new. Damn.

Another boy had gotten detention, named Chiisu Kimura. He was a tan-skinned, short brown-haired boy with silvery blue eyes. He was a rather nice child, but when he had been called up to solve a math problem, he found he couldn't do so and started to curse wildly, like "DAMN THIS F---ING MATH! DAMN IT TO HELL!!"

That was the reason...he got detention. Not surprising, how would you handle it if you were a grade school teacher?

During the math...uh...incident, Ken doodled on his notebook pages, trying to figure out what those notes meant, why he had gotten the Angel DIJITs, what 'utilizing the Gates' meant, and especially what he had heard at his dad's computer last night. He was going to check that again that night.

What was going on?

"Hello!" Chiisu Kimura sighed happily, striding into the detention room/computer room rather casually. "What's your deal?"

"'Scuse me?" What Chiisu had said made no sense to him…

"I mean…tell me who 'ya are, then!" He smiled as he sat next to Ken, and he spoke,

"..My name's Ken Miraki Ichijouji, I was born here, then we moved around for a couple of years, and now we just moved back. I don't really like it here all that much…" Chiisu was thinking,

"So…THAT'S why it sounds like you're not from around here!" "Duh…I just explained…" "My name's Chiisu Kimura! Pleased to meet 'ya! Born and raised in Tokai, Japan!" "Tokai…?" Chii nodded, then glanced at the pocket of Ken-chan's jacket, "Oiiii…what's 'dat?" "This…?" Ken made an effort to hide the little computer gadget device thing from the child, but Chii kicked him over and stole it from him, "Oooooooooohhhh…." He sighed in amazement, "…what is it?!"

"GIVE IT BACK!!!"

"TELLLLLL MEEEEEEE WHAAAAAAAAT IIIIIIIIT IIIIIIIS!" Both immediately covered their mouths, afraid the teachers patrolling the hallways would hear them.

"Alright, to be honest, I don't really know what it is or what it does!"

"Oh…" Both sat in silence.

….

…

….

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing_

A note of a song…some instrument…

"You hear that?!" Ken asked quietly, but Chii just gave him a confuzzled look,

"What? Other than the teachers smoking?"

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing_

"There it is again!" He got up from his chair, and noticed the little device glowing with a red light.

"What's going ON?! WHY DO YOU KEEP HEARING THINGS I CAN'T?!"

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing_

Ken's eyes widened, then pointed, "THERE! THERE IT IS!!" A computer.

"Are you alright?" Ken stared at what he was pointing at, but as he lowered his arm, the computer's monitor turned on, flashing with the same light as the device.

"What?" Chii was having a heart attack of sorts while Ken stared,

"WHAT THE F--- IS GOING ON?! SOMEONE TELL ME QUICK!! PLEASE!! HOLY SHIT THIS IS CREEPY!!!"

The teacher was beginning to open the door,

"Now, what did I tell you boys about talking?!"

"KEN!" Chiisu screamed, falling to the floor during his heart attack. The teacher stormed in,

"NO YELLING AND NO CURSING, MR. KIMURA!! W-…Wait…" She glanced around, "…weren't…there two of you here…?"

"YeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!" The same computer that had drawn Ken in was beginning to bring Chiisu in. He screeched and flailed around, but the screen ate him like a sandwich. Well, okay, not QUITE like that…but still.

She, their teacher, sat in the silent room. She hesitated, then pulled out a carton of cigarettes from her pocket. She lit one and breathed in the fumes,

"And…why exactly did I become a teacher, again?" She sighed, exhaling.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH-inhale-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH-oooof!"

Ken and Chiisu had landed in a forest of sorts, but it most certainly wasn't the detention room…perhaps not even that World.

"What the ever loving f…"

"Please stop with the swearing…"

"But-…"

"STOP!" Ken's screaming had awakened a gigantic, bug like creature, with scissor-like mandibles, ready to strike.

"AAAAAH!" The two quickly turned and ran.

"KEN-CHAAAAAAN?! WHERE ARE WE?!?!?"

"I----DON'T----KNOW!!! JUST KEEP RUNNING!!"

So they continued doing so for about five minutes, until Ken tripped and fell.

"C'mon, man! Keep running!" Chiisu screeched.

"I…can't…" He tried to get up, but he couldn't, "…my legs just aren't working!" The giant red bug came nearer and nearer….

"No…" Ken's eyes opened wide, knowing he was going to die... 'Wait!' He felt the two weird guns from earlier appear beside him. "Make the best of what ya got…" He snatched them both, left and right, and shot.

Madness. Sheer madness. The bright blue flame-like lasers shot from the pistols at an alarming rate, getting the creature right in the eyes. Green blood poured from where it's eyes had been, and it thrashed around wildly…and Ken was in it's way…

"AH!"

"KEN-SAMA!!!" Chiisu screamed, hastily rushing in to try to drag Ken away from the path of the raging monster…

"No…"

"ERASE CLAW!!"

A white blast of light rained down on the monster, mutilating it and reducing it to a splatter of organs and green blood all over, getting all over the two boys on the ground.

"Eeeew…" Chiisu moaned in disgust.

"HEY! YOU BOYS ALRIGHT?!" Both glanced up to see a normal-seeming boy and another monster. The boy had soft, yet spiky brown hair that shone in the sunlight, and had clear blue eyes. He wore a gray shirt with some sort of armor over his chest, shoulder, and arm, and wore green cargo pants. He held a wooden staff in his hand.

The monster looked different from the massive insect, it was dark, with a color scheme of gray to black-ish, and had a mask of sorts over it's head, and overall it looked like a human-adult-sized dragon, complete with two black wings, outlined in red.

"Ah…A…ah…" Ken tried to speak, but something just wouldn't let him…

The boy and his monster slid down the ledge to them, but he looked concerned at Ken's condition,

"…Cyberdramon," he ordered the monster, "…carry him, he needs help, fast."

"Who are…?" Chiisu asked, the boy knew what he was going to say, though,

"I am Ryou Akiyama of the Dejitaru Rebels."

"What's…?" Chiisu asked again, but then noticed Ken was passed out or something. "AHHH!"

"C'mon! We don't have much time!" He snatched Chiisu's hand, the dragon picked up the fainted one, and they all ran as fast as possible.

"Huh…wha…where am I…?" Ken asked as he awoke, eyes not focusing on anything and everything a blur…

"Ken Miraki Ichijouji?" The boy that had saved them earlier stood above him. He was lying down on a cot of sorts, having a wet cloth on his head. Something was wrong…he couldn't move…

"How'd…you know my name…?"

"Well, we finally got some information outta the crazy one. Are you feeling better?" Ken then felt a surge of pain in his stomach, replying,

"…no…"

"Alright. Get some rest, then…" The boy smiled with a sigh, and left Ken to himself.

"Ryou-san," his dragon monster, Cyberdramon, asked, "how is he doing?"

"I think the effects may be wearing off…"

"Did you see…his weapons…?" Ryou nodded, having a dark look on his face,

"Yes," he picked up one of the laser revolvers and eyed it, "these are…weapons of a hacker…"

"What?! Ryou-san…you must be joking…"

"How else would he have a digivice?" Ryou pointed to the little thingamajig, the device that lead the two there in the first place… "Signs point to…he's a hacker, like Janis…"

"Please do not mention her name, Ryou-san."

"Fine, but I needn't say anything about the new project the Fighters are developing…?"

"Right, Ryou-san," the dragon nodded, "the Senjo system, the system that can control and manipulate any piece of data in this World, the Dejitaru Sekai."

"And we, as the Dejitaru Rebels," Ryou set the firearm down, "must do all we can to save this World from that. Rearranged data…meaning they could rewrite any data…completely destroy it all…"

Cyberdramon changed the subject, "Alright, Ryou-san…where is that boy, Kimura Chiisu?"

"Uh oh…" The boy hesitated, then ran, "CYBER-CHAN! I'LL BE RIGHT BACK!"

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiiing_

'What…'

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiiing_

'What're you trying to tell me…?'

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiing_

'What….?'

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiing---_

That sound stopped, another began in it's place. Water…_walking _on water…that wasn't possible, but that's what it was…

More voices, like Chiisu's ("..is he alright, Ryou?"), the boy who saved him ("..he hasn't recovered yet…"), and a few others…One he focused hard to hear…

"I understand…you have psychic abilities…but does that give you the right to attack a teacher?!"

'How…' Millions…literally, _millions _of voices, many in languages he couldn't understand. He could hear…everything…

He was lost. Lost in darkness. Staring at all the voices around him. They were shadows, figures without faces. All they were…were bodies and whatnot of a human, but at the head was nothing. Nothing but mouths, chattering away. Eother happy, sad, angry, everything…

Every conversation in that World, perhaps in many others also. They all crowded around him, their actions not matching their words, all of them had claws, trying to grab at his throat.

"S..Stop!" He cried, "…SHUT UP! ALL OF YOU!!" They continued and tried to strangle him…

"STOP! PLEASE!!" He screamed, even though the ones in the inner circle now had their sharp claws into Ken's neck.

"Please…all of you…" He felt the tears… "…stop…" he lost feeling in his throat then…

All the voices immediately stopped. All the choking…everything. It was all silent.

_Shiiiiiiiiiiing_

"Who are you…?" Ken asked, his own voice disappearing through the darkness around him.

_Shiiiiiiiiiiing_

"You…do you need my help? Is that it? Were you the one who gave me…"

The sound stopped. It was as if the presence that was clearly there hesitated.

_R…Re.._

A voice much like the ringing sound… "What…?"

_Re…Release me…_

"What…what're you talking about?"

_Release me…now…_

Another pair of claws wrapped around him once more, this time it wasn't a human…

"LET ME GO!"

_Now…release me now…_

"STOP!"

"KEN! WAKE UP!"

His eyes quickly opened, sitting up and glancing around nervously. He was drenched with cold sweat, eyes quivering in fear and confusion.

"Wh…what a terrible dream…" he sighed, then noticing Ryou next to him.

"How're you feeling, kid?" He asked, handing a bowl of steamed rice to him.

"Better…" He noticed he was sitting up, and no longer felt sick.

"Good, the effects of Illegal Gate Utilization have worn off…" The words clicked in Ken's mind,

"WHAAAT?!" 'Utilize the Gates' the note had said…but Ryou just said:

"Gate Utilization from the Genjitsu is Illegal and punishable by the Dejitaru. Why? It's like…" He thought a moment, "You know what a hacker is, right? One who can enter a mainframe or computer system illegally, and screw around? It's…like that. You can't enter this World from there… As another note, you would be tracked and punished personally by the Digital Counsel, and THAT wouldn't be a good…" Ken interrupted,

"So I'm a hacker?"

"No…I think you may have just gotten lucky…"

"Wait…you're a kid like me! How did you get here, then?!" Ryou hesitated,

"…I was born here. The village I was born in, however, was brutally destroyed…" He glanced at the floor, looking sad.

"Sorry, you don't have to continue if you don't wanna…" But Ryou insisted,

"…by the Chaos Fighters…an elite group of evil, murderous fiends…"

"The Chaos Fighters…?"

Interrupting, I think I should describe in detail what Ken and Chii look like. First the crazy one, Chiisu. I described what his hair and face looked like… He wore a red shirt with no sleeves and khaki pants. Ken had short, ear-cut length (phrased right?) blue hair and icey, purple-tinted blue eyes. He wore his white Chinese shirt with the black pants that matched, but he still wore the jacket he found at the new home. How he got it when he had transferred from the 'Genjitsu' to the 'Dejitaru' was anyone's guess… It was a red wind-breaker jacket, with white in some areas. To finish the outfit, Ken also had the Chinese style hat he had gotten from a friend of his as a good-bye present. He actually wore it on his head seldom, but he let it hang, necklace-style for 'good luck' so to speak.

"How's it coming?" The silvery-haired lady asked the doctor, still interrogating the sick-looking, pale girl. The doctor responded, "Well, she's not talking at all."

"Tell us…" She grabbed the girl by the shoulders, but she barely noticed, still with a blank expression, "…The secret of hacking into the Gates!"

"You may not Utilize Gates. It is illegal," the girl muttered vacantly.

"TELL US! Rewriting data of the Dejitaru…the deadliest weapon of all…"

"…you may not…" she repeated, then started coughin in mid-sentence.

"What's wrong with her?"

Blood splattered to the floor…

"TELL US, YOU WRETCHED CHILD!!!" She screamed shaking the coughing subject wildly, "WHAT ARE THE SCRETS TO HACKING?!" She coughed right into her face, blood all over…

"Ugh…what is this?!"

The doctor merely ignored the fact their subject was writhing on the floor in agony, coughing wildly and spitting up blood. "There seems to be some side-effect to Gate Utilizing and Hacking…" he muttered, doodling on his notebook, "…and this must be her reaction…"

"That means…" The woman sighed, staring at the girl, "…she's…a hacker, right?"

"Oh, she's more than that, for sure. In fact…"

"There are some in your World," Ryou stated, as they were having a meeting of sorts, consisting of him, Ken, Chiisu, Cyberdra, and another 'monster' named Wizardmon, who looked like a sorcerer with a pointed hat and a cloak of sorts. He seemed to be stitched up in many places, as if falling apart like an old doll. Ken thought he looked remotely like a Black Mage from the Final Fantasy games, but he tried to ignore it for the most part. "…who know a lot about this hacking thing, more than I do…" He stared at Ken for his next statement, "You should go there alone, since you seem to be able to hack the Gates. There are some who have also done what you can…" So, Ken was given an address, so he knew where to go to associate with the other 'hackers'. Chiisu was in a panic,

"Wait…what about me?!"

"You have to stay…" Cyberdra muttered, "…you got pulled in by mistake, and you cannot leave without a digivice like Ken-san's…" The dragon pointed to the little device. Chiisu muttered some terrible things as Wizardmon and Ken left to find a Gate for him to leave through.

"Don't worry, Chii," Ryou smiled, "…we'll play golf!"

"Golf…?!"

"Here, this is the one you'll leave through."

"Where does it lead?" Ken asked, fitting his two firearms into their holsters on his belt while trying to catch up to Wizardmon.

"It leads to a payphone outside where you need to go. It'll only be a couple blocks to get there from here." Ken then yelled,

"A PAYPHONE?!"

"Yah, since those aren't monitored by the Dejitaru, and the Genjitsu has no idea of the Utilization process, or this World in general, so payphones are a great way to travel."

Ken nodded, and held up the 'digivice'. The Dejitaru Rebel military general smiled at him with a final note of advice,

"You must not get caught using a watched Gate. Use the payphones or laptop computers with wireless connections, so they can't be traced…" Ken nodded.

"Be careful, alright, Ken-chan?" He nodded again, and smiled,

"I'll be fine."

"We'll be sending him with you," Wizard pointed to another little monster, this one was smaller than any other he had seen yet. A little catterpillar-looking green monster with big blue eyes and a weird marking on it's head. "This is Wormmon. The Dejitaru Rebels and I are assigning him as your Partner."

"Partner…?" He muttered in response, and Ken kneeled down to the bug, "Hello, my name is-AAAAH!" The bug in response to his greeting bit him with the sharp teeth it had.

"A----AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! PAIN!" He screamed, swinging his arm wildly until the little bug let go, flying into a nearby tree.

"WHY'D YOU BITE ME?!" The digimon known as Wormmon was silent, and Ryou laughed a little bit, saying,

"Alright. You two had better get going… No biting, neither of you." The bug groaned as the two disappeared through the Gate. "That…was odd…can he pull it off?" Cyberdramon strode up with Ryou and Chiisu, the digimon asking,

"What about her?"

"Right…the Moonlight Assassin…"

"Thank you for not using her name, Ryou-san…"

"She'll probably meet him, and judge him, as she does the others….Just hope he survives…"

"Who're you talking about?!" Chii screeched.

Ken reached his destination with the little digimon sitting on his shoulder. He was in a dark area of Kyoto, a dark alleyway with sounds of techno music in the distance inside one of the bulidings, shrouded in the same darkness.

"Wormm-chan…" Ken shivered, "…this is creepy…"

"Grow up," the bug responded, jumping to the ground, "Let's just get this over with already." Ken began walking, but when he turned around, the digimon wasn't following him.

"Wha---…I thought Ryou said…"

"I was your Partner? Yah, I am, but I'm only like a bodyguard. If you're in trouble, call for me, alright?!" Ken stared at the ground in hesitation,

"Well…I'm not too used to these areas…"

"Tough luck!" The digimon screeched as he wiggled to the side of the alley, hiding in the shelter of a bunch of cargo boxes.

Ken was silent, but he dug the note with the address out of his pocket, strained to read it, and began walking. It was around eleven o' clock, and a bunch of weirdos and questionable people roamed the dark alleys that made him want to shudder in fear, but he had to keep going to find out what was happening. Besides, he was armed and perhaps dangerous.

…Back in the Dejitaru….

"Alright, Chiisu," Ryou nodded, trekking over to the fourteenth hole, "That's… 29 for me and…urr…" he suddenly had to hesitate, pull out a calculator and jot down his friend's score, "1147…"

"Goddamit!" Ryou sighed and struck the golf ball, "Wheeeeeee---- there it goes… right---on---the---green! Yes! Your turn." Chiisu grabbed the club and positioned himself, preparing to his the ball. He swung—nothing. He swung again—also nothing. For many times, this went on until Chii went ballistic:

"F--- THIS F---ING STUPID B--- GAME OF SATAN! F--- IT STRAIGHT TO F---ING HELL! F--- IT ALL!" Ryou suddenly grabbed the club from him and announced sternly,

"Alright, you won. Now let's get you home."

He finally reached the address, another dark building, and the music seemed to be leaking out. He inhaled and exhaled slowly, as if to calm himself,

"God, please keep me safe," He prayed, stepping down the stairs of the underground entrance.

Inside. Loud, pulsing techno music. Flashing, blinding lights. Shining darkness that enveloped all. It was bright, but dark. He couldn't see anyone's face clearly. There were many, perhaps two hundred, people, all dancing madly to the earsplitting music. Ken found he had to cover his ears slightly to prevent himself from losing his hearing. He wasn't wearing the jacket anymore, but now a light cloak of sorts, dark blue--darker than his hair, with a metal band that tied around his neck. No one thought he looked strange. In fact, it was either a) they really couldn't see him in the flashing lights and new-age techno, or b) they were wearing weirder things, like a few women who weren't wearing remotely anything. He squinted his eyes around, not really knowing what to look for. "Ah, how can I find anyone in here…?" He muttered to himself, stranded in the crowds of the many dancing people.

_Shiiiiiiiiiing_

The voices, all of the voices again. Ken closed his eyes and thought,

'Where are the hackers that are supposed to be here?'

_Shiiiiiiiiiing_

Voices, only three this time…

"I can't believe it! Janis strikes again, ne?"

"Oh…she's really making us look bad…"

"Well, we're not really good people, here, Izu. We DO work for CHAOFI…"

Ken opened his eyes to see the three he had just heard, they were staring at him also.

"Who's the kid?" One with spiked brown hair, different from Ryou's and Chiisu's, muttered, then laughed, "This your new boyfriend, Ruki?" The orange/blonde haired girl with purple eyes screeched in response,

"No! I never seen this kid in my life! He's probably just some stupid kid that stumbled into the Dejitaru on accident." Another boy, who had red/purple hair sighed,

"Ruki, Taichi, what's the chances of that happening? Look at what he's wearing…"

"'Scuse me…" Ken asked timidly, walking up to the three children, all looking a little bit older than him, around Osamu's age. "S-Someone told me…you'd know about these…" He took out his two DIJIT lasers and digivice. The girl nearly fell off the table (she was sitting on it. Bizarre!) and the two boys let their cards drop to the floor.

"Angels…?!" Ruki whispered in shock, "..There were only…three of these babies made!"

"Three?" Ken repeated, and Ruki nodded as she picked one up,

"Yah, there are these two here, and then the model prototype! These are the rarest they get, palie…"

"F---, where'd you get this?!" Taichi, the brown-haired one, screamed holding the digivice to Ken's head. He shrugged,

"I—I found it." The three hacker children stared in disbelief and blankly said,

"What?" Ken nodded, and stated the situation.

"Yah, I found it with the guns, they were in a shoebox, and had a jacket wrapped around it. There were notes that were assigned to me…"

"Speaking of assign…" The red haired one, who still remained nameless, muttered, "…you have a digimon Partner then, right?" Ken nodded again,

"Yah…but he wouldn't come with me…" The red-haired one nodded in reply,

"Yes, the digimon should never appear here, or else it'll cause all Hell to break loose."

"Koushiro-haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!!" Suddenly, out of the red-haired boy's backpack, a little…weird looking _thing _popped out, screaming, "I'm hungry!"

"Sh-SHUT UP!" The boy, now dubbed 'Koushiro' shoved the digimon back into his bag, "Don't come out 'till we get home!" "Aw…"

"What the hell was that?!" Ken screamed. "My digimon," Koushiro sighed, "Motimon." Muffled screams came from his bag, so Kou-chan took the bag and kicked it at the wall, "SHUT UP!"

Ken was silent at the abuse of the little pink thing. So were Taichi and Ruki.

"Alright," Ken took the gun from Ruki and picked the other one up, and aimed them at Koushiro, "tell me, what's going on here?! What do I have to do with all this?!"

The three of them hesitated. "Well," Koushiro began, "to be honest, we don't know how or why you have a digivice… obviously, you have the abilities of a hacker within 'ya…"

"Within….me…?"

"Well, anything weird happen lately?" Ruki asked. Ken thought a moment,

"There…has been…weird things happening…" he told them about the computer thing, hearing the kill (the sword cutting into a human), the whole voices of all conversations and everything, and being able to track them just a little while ago.

They all hesitated again.

"What?" They glanced at each other with looks of nervousness. "Even if you're a hacker," Ruki muttered, "…that ain't right…and I doubt it's an after-effect of Gate Utilization…" The seemingly-silent Taichi spoke then,

"Hey, tell us, you know anything about Janis Sukaraki?"

"Janis…Sukaraki?" They all nodded, Taichi smiling darkly. It was somewhat easier to hear now, since the style of music had changed from techno to light rock. It wasn't too loud. It was called 'Over the End', as the DJ had announced, by Masami Okui…Taichi continued talking,

"Yah, Koushiro, perhaps the best hacker of the Dejitaru, couldn't even take her on. His parents were hackers, also…but…" He glanced at red-haired Koushiro, and stopped. Ken noticed Kou-chan was staring at the floor, hiding his tears.

"Koushiro…" Ken muttered. Ruki closed her eyes and stated,

"It's said she judges every hacker for worthiness. I've heard, though…" The other two joined in with the last words,

"…none of them survive." Ken's eyes opened wide,

"…n-none…none of them…survive?!" Koushiro nodded, wiping the tears from his face,

"That f---ing Janis…she killed my parents…"

"…and she'll most likely kill us, too," Ruki muttered. All of them were silent. The music blared in the background.

"Janis Sukaraki," Ken muttered. "Janis…"

"None other," Taichi sighed.

"Hey, kids!" The DJ had walked up to them, holding a tray of beverages. "Here!"

There were four, each filled with a liquid Ken could barely see, due to the inefficient lighting. Ruki, Taichi, and Koushiro immediately thanked the man and drank theirs, but Ken was hesitant.

"C'mon, it won't kill 'ya," Taichi muttered. "Try it."

The boy who had just been thrown into these strange events stared at the drink for a few minutes, until he lifted it and took a sip…

His eyes immediately popped open, throwing the drink to the floor through a fit of coughing,

"WHAT IS THIS STUFF?!" He coughed, and the other three stared.

"What do you mean?" Kou-chan asked, looking completely fine like the other two.

"Is…I-Is this alcoholic?!" The three nodded, and Ken stared, mouth hanging open in shock.

"What…the ever loving HELL is wrong with you?!" He screamed. The music stopped, the lights turned completely on, and all of them were staring at Ken. He felt angry, not afraid or humiliated. "All of you people…All of you are SICK!"

"Opinions are great," Koushiro smiled and lifted a finger to cue the music and lights…the lights went back to normal, but the music was interrupted…there was a slight ring of bells…

"She's here…" Taichi muttered.

"Hello, everyone." A cold, demonic, yet quiet voice came from the rafters of the ceiling. Everyone had forgotten what Ken had said, now staring up at the figure. The skylights let the full moon in the heavens shine below, letting everyone see her.

She had blue hair like Ken's that went down to her shoulders, wearing a metal helmet much like Cyberdramon's. She had two silvery gold metal bell chimes tied on two separate strings around her neck. On the helmet, it covered all of her face but her mouth and part of her nose, and where it stopped on her ears were wing-like ribbons. Seriously, they looked like wings on her head. She wore a white and blue outfit, mostly blue with various stripes of white. She had armor on her neck, wrists, waist, and ankles. Ken saw a band of golden metal, fused with many colored stones, though he seemed to be the only one who could notice.

Janis Sukaraki, the Moonlight Assassin.


	2. Part II Life

She stood there, upon the rafters of the club filled with flashing lights and loud music. The girl, as I had gathered, was Janis Sukaraki, the "Moonlight Assassin", and I knew then why she was called that. In the ominous, shining twilight of the moon above her, she looked…almost heavenly. You could tell, though, from the feel of her hidden stare underneath a metal helmet, armor that glistened in the dim, blue light, and the haunting 'ring' of the bell chimes tied on two strings around her neck-guard, she was ready. Ready to execute anything with speed and excellence, without hesitation. Her mission then?

To judge all who stand before her, namely, us-the hackers. I heard…that none survived judgment from the Assassin, a no-mercy, brutal kill with the blade of her weapon, the Sakura. Scared. I felt scared, staring at her. I felt something along with that fear, though…

Excitement. I felt as if I could say, in a cool, calm manner, "Bring it on."

Part II LIFE

Janis smiled as she pulled out her giant, metal-rimmed sword, "Ready?" She muttered, and Taichi stepped back a bit, in an attempt to leave.

"Ken…Ruki, Kou-chan…on the count of three, run as fast as you possibly can…" Ken glanced back at him, as if to say 'whaaaat?!'. Ruki stepped back, as did Kou. "1….." Ken closed his eyes. "2….." …he glanced back at Janis, whose smile was wider now. "3!!" They began running, but the newbie hacker figured it out, "GUYS! IT'S A TRAP! DON'T!" Too late. Janis was on the ground, more particular, in front of the three who had attempted to run away.

"No one can escape judgment," she muttered, a cold voice that sent shivers down everyone's spines. The non-hacker mass of people just stood, both confused and amazingly scared, too scared to move. "…Prepare yourselves…" Through Janis' confidence and the mass' fright, a small voice spoke,

"…Bring it on."

Janis lowered her sword, and gazed in shock at the sight of the voice's owner, Ken. His expression was the same as hers earlier; confident, along with another show of expression, anger and…excitement.

"How do you fight without a weapon?" Ken pulled the two Angel DIJITs from his belt in answer. The girl simply smiled, pointing to her own set of lasers attached to her belts,

"You wish to be first to die?"

"There won't be anything like that happening," he stated quietly…something was wrong with his voice, though nobody could really pinpoint it…

"Ready?" Ken nodded, and Janis held her blade for battle, "This ought to be interesting."

From that moment, next thing Ken knew, he was lying on the pavement outside the building, blood flowing from his mouth. "Ow…" He muttered, staggering to his feet. Janis strode up to him, sword pointed to his neck, ready to deal the final move,

"Disgrace."

"Huh?" Janis lifted the blade and held it behind her head,

"You…are a disgrace. You don't deserve to even BE a hacker, let alone wield two Angel Series and actually think you can beat me…"

"I never said I could," he held his guns again, "All I said was 'Bring it on'…" She charged with her blade, and he held to defend….

WHAM! ..WHAM-WHAM! A vertical strike, followed by two horizontal strikes. Ken tried his hardest to defend, and did so averagely, though he managed to get a large cut all over his knuckles on his left hand. She kept slashing away with her sword, laughing insanely as Ken got more and more injured, mostly his hands. She finally got tired of that eventually, so she kicked a foot into his chest and kicked him to the ground once more. He was dazed for a moment, so she seized the chance. She lunged into the air, and her sword came down…

"AH!" He suddenly recovered, and rolled out of the way, just in time to avoid the blade lodging itself into his forehead. Instead, the metal-rimmed blade got stuck into the ground, completely delved and stuck into the pavement.

"Holy…freaking…Hell…" he muttered, wide-eyed, and Janis abandoned her lodged-in-the-ground sword and dashed over to him. He was unprepared, so she tackled him and held him to the ground.

"C'mon, give up!" She smiled again, a voracious and insane smile. Ken shook his head, though he was fully aware of what was going on, "Never." Janis laughed, and took her right arm and punched him in the face.

"GIVE UP!"

"N…Never…" He sighed again, though she kept striking him with her fists, which really, really hurt, due to the metal all over her wrists, along with her knuckles. He closed his eyes through the immense pain, then heard it:

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing_

'I can't get up…besides….I'm too scared...'

_Use it._

The sharp voice came from somewhere in the back of his mind, then it continued,

_Use it now. You're a better hacker then she can ever be._

Despite the questions that arose in his mind, he grabbed Janis by the throat suddenly. She stopped punching him, and he stood up, now standing to full height and still had his hands around her neck. Blood stained the sleeves of his shirt and cloak, along with Janis' outfit and armor.

"Ha. What're you gonna do, kid?" She smiled again, and Ken felt an odd sensation in his arm. He recoiled away from Janis, releasing the grip on her neck. He held his left arm in pain, screaming in agony.

"What…What's going on?!" Janis merely stared at him, her expression-blank. His arm was shaking, and obviously hurting.

"Ken…?" Worm-chan watched the event from his hideout, thinking, "…no way…he can't…have access to an Angel Ring…"

He closed his eyes, tears streaming, arm hurting.

"Make…it stop…" He sighed, falling to the ground.

_This…this is what you use._

Suddenly, a weird, crystal-like bracer appeared on a part of his arm between his wrist and his elbow. The bracer was…floating around his arm, and more parts of it appeared abruptly. Ken held his arm towards the sky, still shaking wildly from both the pain and fear. A metal bracer, this one actually attached _to _him, appeared on his wrist, three wires connecting it with the translucent blue crystal bracer. Four giant, diamond-shaped crystals unfolded from the crystal wristband. A circle of light appeared around the metal band on his wrist, and from that light emerged three spider-like metal pieces and two pieces of metal like the other three, except pointed up, instead of down. It was like…a "spider-halo", so to speak.

"What the---…" he sighed, wide-eyed and scared. It was as big, perhaps even bigger, than he was, but it was weightless due to the fact it was floating, the only piece really attached being the metal bracer.

Janis smiled slightly, "Well, well…an Angel Ring."

"A…WHAT?!" Ken screamed as he stared at the floating device now positioned on his arm.

"OIII, KODOMO BAKA!!" Wormmon jumped out from his hideout and near Ken, but still in the crowd.

"WORM-CHAN! WHAT DO I DO?!" The bug was silent, then he responded,

"Uh…I dunno…you're on your own here, Ken-chan…"

"You…LITTLE…!!!" Janis suddenly came forward, blade out, as if to slice him in half. Defense…Defense…

_Wha…What can I do…?_

Suddenly, his arm jerked. He lifted it, Angel Ring and all, and aimed it to the sky.

"There's…no…way…" Janis scoffed, stopping in mid-attack.

'Can he…?!'

A hole in the sky opened. A hole.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Everyone screeched. Ken's eyes were glazed over…somehow… His arm jerked again, the hole got bigger…the expression on his face made you know…

He knew…what he was doing. Then, from the hole, emerged a monster of the Dejitaru…

"DIGIMON SUMMON!" Data streams engulfed the beast, and it took shape. A giant skeleton dinosaur, a heart visible through the rib-cage and flaming green eyes, "SKULLGREYMON!" The monster, SkullGreymon, came to the ground with a rather large THUD, right behind Ken. The skeleton picked him up and placed him gently on his shoulder. Ken no longer looked insane, now he was confuzzled.

"Wha…who are you?" The green eyes shifted to him,

"You summoned me here, ne?" Ken nodded hesitantly,

"…so, you must need my aid?" Ken nodded again. SkullGreymon nodded,

"I shall do what you please, Master."

"Master…?" He repeated, but he closed his eyes. Opening them, he turned his expression from confuzzled to military-esque.

"ATTACK!"

Pointing his finger to Janis, the beast lunged at the girl assassin. She looked nervous in no way, and merely took out her blade…

"The beast Ken had summoned exhaled a massive wave of green flame right at her…

SHING! Nothing, except some burnt buildings.

"Couldn't even summon a decent monster…"

Ken retaliated verbally, sending the monster back through the hole,

"WHADDAYA MEAN?!" Janis sighed,

"If you're gonna be a hacker, do it right."

"Look, I never wanted any of this! I just…got pulled into it!"

She scoffed, so Ken ran, ready to punch her…

"Arrogant," she merely grabbed his arm, pulling her right arm back. The armband Ken had noticed earlier was glowing.

"SPIRIT…" It was glowing…her entire arm…ready… "…GUN!"

The light sent him flying, about half a mile away from the scene. He'd landed in a pile of crates, so he wasn't too hurt…

"Ow…"

Janis was gone. Ken muttered something, then passed out.

"Man…" Wormmon sighed as he wiggled to his partner when the crowds died, "…poor kid…has no idea…"

It was late, and Kyoto was dark. It was around eleven-thirty-ish, and Osamu Ichijouji was having some trouble.

"Well…I thought I could…"

"Sorry, but there isn't anyone named Shirubi Karaki here…"

He sighed, then stared at the latest letter he had gotten from his penpal. The Kyoto hospital was, luckily, opened for visit until midnight, so he still had some time, but was she even there?

'It says…that she'd be here…Kyoto Hospital…' He thought.

"Wait a sec…" the woman at the front desk searched through her files, "…there's a Shirubi, but the last name doesn't match."

She pulled out a file, labeled TAMAZAKI, SHIRUBI.

Osamu stared at the letter. Almost all of it was written in Japanese, but some was in English. Shi had mentioned in her letter she was from America, New York to be exact. He glanced at the English-written piece, and it matched the file's label.

"Is that...who you're lookin' for, kid?" Osa-chan hesitated,

"Ya...Yah, I am. Thank you."

The girl had recovered from her fit of coughing and pain, basically. She was sitting up straight, and her "guests" had left.

"I am so bored..." she muttered quietly, then noticed the man's notebook and pen, "...hmm..." She lifted a finger, and the notebook began to levitate slightly, "...now, let's see what he wrote..." she waved her finger and the book opened.

"Nothing. Just some...uh...doodles, I think..." she tilted her head, trying to examine his 'artwork'. "...wait, is that...?! EWW!" She immediately raised her arm and jerked it to the side, pointing to the nearby wall, which then the notebook crashed into, then falling to the floor. A blue-haired boy entered the room after the crash.

"H...Hello?" She stared at him with a blank expression. "Are...you Shirubi Karaki?" Her eyes opened wide with shock and she laughed slightly,

"Nobody calls me that anymore..."

"Ah? Why not?" She hesitated and leaned back in her chair,

"My mom, Chihiro Karaki, just got married to a guy named Etsuko Tamazaki, ya get it?"

"Chihiro...Karaki?" He repeated.

"Yah, she's a famous model...not like..." she stared at him with vibrant green/blue eyes, "...you would know anything about that, ne?" He nodded. "Osamu Ichijouji, ne?" She asked, and again he nodded in reply.

"Look a lot different than I imagined..." Osa-chan admitted, and Shi laughed.

"What, expected somethin' else?" He sighed,

"Kinda...Never thought you'd be in a psychiatric ward..." Both of them laughed quietly.

"Yah, they put me in here 'cuz of this..." She waved her hand, and Osa-chan's glasses went right into her hand.

"Eh...? What'd ya do?!" He looked around, and Shi stood,

"What's wrong?"

"I'm...really, extremely near-sighted...I can't see a thing, really..." She walked up to him, and stared at him-only about an inch away from his face,

"Can ya see me?" He was silent, and she laughed.

"Midnight!" The nurse called from outside the room, "Hours are over, kid!"

Shi laughed again and gave Osamu his glasses.

"So...can I see ya tomorrow...if that's alright?" Shi nodded at his inquiry and he turned to leave.

"See ya later, then..."

"Bye ..." So, she was alone in the giant steel room once again.

Another nurse came in with a pillow and a blanket of sorts,

"Looks like you're gonna be here a little while longer, Tamazaki-chan..." she handed the girl her items, and Shi scowled,

"My name is Karaki."

"What...? I couldn't hear you..." Shi scowled again,

"My name...is Karaki..."

"Come again...?" Shi shook with rage, and stated furiously,

"MY NAME IS KARAKI!" Lifting her hand again, she sent the woman flying, like the notebook, crashing into the wall. The impact with the metal walls shattered bones in varous places, leaving her flailing weakly on the ground. Shi strode ominously up to her,

"Say it," she scowled, "...my name is Shirubi...Karaki."

Suddenly, several others came in. Shi made no effort to fight them off, for she'd had reason to attack, just like the teacher...

They grabbed her by the shoulders and shocked her.

That was it. She was passed out again.

A similar thing had happened, which was why Shirubi was there in the first place. She had attacked a teacher, and basically decapitated an entire classroom of people. She had done it with her "mild psychic abilites".

She was not one to be messed with.

Ken woke up quietly. It was midmorning and he was back in his room at Highton Veiw. He glanced around slightly, feeling tired and not really able to move well, and saw Chiisu and Wormmon sitting on the floor nervously.

"Daijobu?" Chii asked. Ken tried to reply,

"Ah.....eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...."

"...I take that as a 'no'..." Worm-chan muttered. "Don't worry, Ryou's on his way here."

"Reee......ohhh...chaaaa...n..." he sighed, then felt stabbing pain.

"Ken-chan!"

"Janis' most powerful attack," the brown-haired Ryou Akiyama came into the room, "Spirit Gun, not many survive it..."

"That's amazing," Wormmon replied, "How are the other three?"

"Yahhh...." Ken muttered.

"They escaped, thank God. We're worried about you, though. Still, we're amazed...and proud, too."

"For reasons just explained."

"Why's Chii so quiet?" Ryou asked, and Worm-chan laughed,

"He's afraid if he talks, he's gonna swear, as he normally does."

Ryou was hesitant to say anything, "...well, Ken...just rest for awhile...Spirit Gun's a very strong attack...for you to take it...I guess..."

"What was...that thing..." Ken said, "...that giant...monster..." He closed his eyes, and saw the giant skeleton beast.

"SkullGreymon, a digimon. I'm surprised you could summon something like that..."

Chiisu finally spoke, "Ryou...how long until Ken's gonna be alright?"

"I'd say...I dunno...a week...?"

"I'd say a day," Wormmon muttered with a little grin.

"Ah...? Why'd you say that?" The little digimon laughed slightly,

"Dunno...just a feeling."

"Wait a sec..." Chii muttered, then screamed, "HOW THE HELL ARE WE HERE IF WE'RE S'POSED TO BE SCHOOL?!"

Everyone in the room sighed.

"Sorry about the language...I really can't help it anymore...but how?"

"As soon as Ken's parents saw his condition, they called the school to say he wouldn't come today. Chii, I already have you covered. I called to say you were on a family trip, which your parents are, yes? To Hong Kong?" Chii nodded with a smile.

"Yep."

"So, it's best if we let Ken get some sleep...we should leave. Wormmon, watch him."

"Yessir, Akiyama-san!"

_What was that…?_

_When I summoned SkullGreymon, or whatever its called…I felt different somehow…_

_I felt powerful…like I could do anything…_

_Amazing…it was such a rush…_

_But how did I do that?! Crazy…_

_Janis…Janis Sukaraki…who are you? Are you even human? What's the deal with this whole hacker thing…_

_Those two guns…it's odd…like they were made especially for me…who gave them to me…?_

_Ah…whatever…I don't care. _

_Still, I felt all that power…a gigantic surge of power…I almost…felt like a God…_

…

…

…

_Whatever._

Shi awoke in the middle of the night, drenched with sweat and gasping for air like a dying fish. Her room was completely dark, no light anywhere, not even from the doorway. She sat up, trying her hardest to see anything in the enveloping darkness. Nothing. She sighed and lay back down.

"I know…what I did was wrong and not needed…still…why do I get so angry about that name…?"

Though most never saw it, Shi was actually a kind person. However, the sight of that side of her was obscured by many of her other characteristics. She was very odd, and quiet, while at the same time loud. She could move small objects with her mind, though she only did so when needed. Shi-chan shivered while she tried to sleep.

"As long as I do it...for a good reason..."

"AAAAAAAAAAH!" Thrown back into one of the nearby gravestones, hitting his back on the hard rock, and toppling to the ground.

"KEN-CHAAN!" Chii screamed, trying to break through the gate to the yard.

Ken stared at the opponents, a silver-haired lady with a red dress, and a mummy-like "human", wielding a giant laser rifle. He staggered back slightly, feeling the blood fall from his eyes and mouth. His own weapons didn't seem to be working somehow. The graveyard still had the aura of death, now painted with blood. It was dark, very dark...

Alright. Most likely, you have no idea what's going on here. The following events happened:

1-Ken got better and recovered from Spirit Gun, miraculously. Everyone was happy, blah blah.

2-Chii and Ken went with Ryou and Worm-chan back to the Dejitaru...

"What?!"

"I wanna come back to the Dejitaru!" Ken screamed, and Ryou glanced at the digimon shaking his head furiously, saying,

"Nuh-uh! Humans don't belong in the..."

"Ahem..."

"Oh...I forgot, Ryou-san...but these two..."

"May aid us in our quest," Ryou smiled, "Come on, we must get to a safer place than this. Then I'll explain."

Back to the list.

3-Ryou explained what the major conflict in the Dejitaru was to Ken and Chii...

"Senjo? Battlefield?" Ryou nodded to Chii's query,

"Yes. Senjo is the Project name of the hacker system the Chaos Legion, or CHAOFI as they are most often called, is creating for...reasons unknown..."

"Millenniumon?" Ken asked. Ryou looked shocked,

"...How...do...?!"

"Eh?" Ryou stared at the ground,

"That...may be the reason for it. Senjo may be able to rewrite any type of data, which is the primary element of this World..."

"So...they'd..." Chii stammered, eyes wide. Wormmon nodded bleakly,

"Yes. They could destroy the Dejitaru." Ken slammed his fists on the table, causing their tea to spill slightly,

"WE CAN'T LET THAT HAPPEN! We'll just-just...defeat the Chaos Fighters, then..."

"Janis' is one of them," Worm-chan stated blankly, and Ken sat down.

"...Janis...?" The digimon laughed a bit through the dark situation,

"Well? Ya still wanna go with that plan?" He hesitated,

"...Ah...I...uh..."

"Gotta say, I'm with ya all the way, kodo-chan."

"WHAT?" Chii screeched.

"Worm-chan? Are you feeling alright?" Ryou asked nervously, and the digimon nodded,

"Yep, I like this kid," he hopped onto Ken's head, "He's a lot like me, that is, if I were a human. Plus, he's stupid. I'm with stupid. I'm in." Ken smiled, even though he was rather angered by the digimon's statement,

"Right. That's it," he stood, the bug still on his head, "I'm gonna fight these...uh, Fighters, and I'm gonna win."

"Ken..."

"Wait..."

"Ready to go, Worm-chan...-san?"

"Yep, Baka...I mean..." The bug hesitated, 'Well, if we're gonna work together, I might as well remember his name', "Ken-chan." Ken smiled again, taking his guns and digivice from the table.

"C-ya lata, guys."

"Ken...just...just..." Ryou sighed with tiredness and smiled also, "...don't do anything stupid..."

"Like I said, Ryou-kun!" The bug screamed, "HE IS STUPID!"

"I am not!"

"I'm coming too!" Chii hollered, standing up. Ryou sighed again,

"Fiiine...I guess I'm coming too, then."

Ken smiled once more, "Oh, forgot something..." He snatched his cup of green tea and drank it fast, "C'mon! Lezzgo! Ryou, lead that way!"

"I thought..."

"Like Worm-chan-san said, I AM STUPID. Lead the way. "

Back to the list once more:

4- The team had trekked and traversed many a mile to find the base of the Legion, which Chiisu hadn't stopped complaining and cursing on.

5- Now, we're back to where we were. The two Ken was fighting were two Fighters who hadn't introduced themselves, but they were obviously guarding the doors to the Legion. Thus, he had to fight them. Their fighting ground was the graveyard outside the giant walls, and darkness loomed around the place, and the aura was of death. Ken was losing, and terribly, I might add.

Now, where were we...oh yah! Ken broke a gravestone falling backwards and is standing wearily on his feet, but perhaps not for much longer.

"Why don't you just run?" The silver haired woman scoffed. Ken fell back, hitting the ground no longer able to stand.

"I can't run...that letter..." Right, the letter had said he was the only one who could save the Dejitaru. Millenniumon, Senjo, Janis...he couldn't just give up and run away... Never. The other one, the mummy, held his large firearm to Ken's head,

"Any last words?" Chiisu, Ryou and Worm-chan kept trying to penetrate the large metal gate to the graveyard, but couldn't do so.

Ken's back hurt, head hurt, unable to stand, guns mysteriously not working, and many cuts all over his body, to top it all off, a giant laser rifle was being held to his head.

"KEN!!" Chii screeched. Worm-chan closed his eyes. Ryou kept trying to break the gate.

The silver haired lady held a hand up,

"Mummymon, we'll finish him later."

"WHAAAT?!" The phantom seemed to be saddened, "Awww...but dear..."

"Shut up, like I said-we'll finish him later." She turned to Ken, still on the ground, "...Tonight." Chii hollered from the gate,

"Yeah, how about Kyofu Middle School?!" Ken looked shocked for a moment, their school?! As a fighting ground?! Sheez!

"We'll be there." So, the two fiends strode away. Ken was still kneeling on the ground, then he sighed.

The gate was opened by Ryou and they ran in. Worm-chan stared at Ken,

"...Didn't think you'd last too long."

"Eh?"

"You're okay, kid."

"Kid...?!"

Worm-chan gazed blankly.

"Look, bug..." Ken muttered, "...don't call me 'kid'...I've had a tough day...let alone first week of being in Japan..."

The bug looked angered, "Stop whining."

"...I'm not...I'm not whining! I'm just tired..."

The bug leered, and then did something unexpected. It seemed to spit some kind of...goo right on Ken's head. He had a look of shock on his face, and felt the pink jellylike glop run down the side of his head.

"Eee-eeee....e.eeeee..." He muttered, staring wide eyed at the substance flowing down his face.

"Aa.....a....aaa...." He leaned to the side, and fell to the ground, unconscious but eyes wide, wide open. "Gross..."

Back at the Ichijouji household...

"Eew...Eew...eew...ick..." Ken scrubbed his head with soap furiously, "Stupid bug..."

"Who ya callin' stupid, Stupid?!" Ken twisted his head around and screamed, "AAAAAH!!" As soon as he calmed down, he said to the little green bug,

"Can't you give me a moment's peace...?"

The bug shook his head, "Nope." Ken put some more soap on his head and scrubbed some more,

"Ya didn't have to spit that stuff on my head..."

"Hey, I'm a bug, deal with it."

"I thought you were a...uh...whatchamacallit..."

"Digimon?" Ken nodded while scrubbing the goo out of his hair.

"Yah...what exactly are you guys, then?" He questioned, beginning to rinse his hair.

"W're citizens of the Dejitaru, beings made out of different types of Data..."

"That much I...ah-knew," Ken turned off the water and leaned on the bathtub's edge, listening attentively to the bug's story.

"Whatever. Anyway, our World was actually a peaceful one..."

"Was?"

"Yes...then Millenniumon came...he emerged from a Gate from another World during the Dejitaru Revolution, sent by a Dark Angel, the time Chaos came and nearly destroyed all Worlds...but a being rose up and fought the entity and won...actually two."

"Two?"

"Their names were Hikari and Kage. Chaos took the form of Yami, another citizen of the Dejitaru during the Revolution. The three were seemingly human...Hikari was killed, as was Kage...but Chaos, aka Yami, though destroyed, unleashed the digimon Millenniumon before his death, promising he would come back..."

Ken was silent.

"..Or something like that… and I apologize if it was a bit summarized..."

"I guess that's okay." He thought a moment, "...Bug."

"Kid."

"Don't call me that."

"Don't call me 'Bug', then, like I'm some disgusting little insect!"

"'CAUSE YOU ARE!" The bug prepared to spit again, but refrained, calmly stating,

"Alright. Why don't we just introduce ourselves, then?"

"'Kay."

"My name's Wormmon."

"Ken Miraki Ichijouji."

Both sat in silence, kneeling on the bathroom floor.

"Worm-chan."

"Ken-chan."

Stared. They just both stared.

Ken blinked. Worm-chan laughed,

"HAHA! I win." Ken-chan was more confused, then he screamed, reaching for a towel,

"BUG!" Then Worm-chan screeched,

"STUPID KID!"

Later, at around midnight, Ken tiptoed out the door, Worm-chan on his shoulder (he had a towel in his backpack, just in case Worm-chan did the spit thing again). He had his Angels attached to his belt and had the red jacket on.

"Bye mom...dad...Osa-..." He then saw his brother standing in front of him on the stairs, arms folded, "-chan..."

"Where're you headed?"

"Nowhere..."

"It's midnight, y'know...if mom and dad catch you..."

"Then they won't. You won't tell," Ken slid past him (Worm-chan was hiding in the bag).

"And if I do?"

"You won't." Osamu suddenly snatched his little brother by the collar and grinded through his teeth,

"Look, Ken, if anything ever happened to you, I'd be the first they'd blame…I can't let you…"

"Why?" Ken snapped back, suddenly clawing out of Osamu's grip, "So they can think you're still the perfect, genius-child?!"

"Ken…?!"

"I swear it sometimes…they love you more than me…I'm such a screw up to you, aren't I…?"

Ken's parents, awakened by the noise, suddenly came bursting into the stairway,

"What're you boys doing so late at night…?" Their mother asked sleepily. Osamu suddenly screeched, "YOU _ARE_ A **F---ING SCREW UP**, KEN!"

And with that, he punched his brother, as hard as he possibly could square in the face. Ken fell over to the floor, hard. His cheek was bruised already. However, this only got him angry. Ken suddenly reached for the DIJITS, and had them both pointed at his brother's head. Everyone was too shocked to move. Osa was petrified.

"I'll show you. I'll show all of you I'm not just some f---ing screw up…" He slowly lowered the guns, "…and you know what, Osamu?" There was a still, deafening silence until Ken screamed,

"I WISH YOU'D JUST DISAPPEAR!" With that, he stormed past his brother, down the stairs, and into the night. There was still silence. Osamu was still petrified.

Kyofu Middle School was dark, since the power systems were shut down (lights, etc). Ken met up with Chii at the gate.

"Hey...where's Ryou-sama?" Chii asked.

"Wasn't he with you?" Worm-chan inquired, but the boys shook their heads.

"Gomenasai for being late," Ryou muttered as he strode up. He was wearing a black trenchcoat of sorts, armed once more with his wooden staff.

"Whoa...you look _cool_," Chii sighed, eying Ryou's clothes.

"C'mon, we're all late. Why'd you wait for me?!"

"...Gomen..." They both muttered nervously. The eldest one sighed with frustration and forced the gate open,

"Let's go."

Ken walked hesitantly into each room, but couldn't find his opponents.

"Where are they...?" He stepped into the gym, the final place. As soon as he opened the door, though, a giant laser shot came and hit him straight between the eyes.

"AAH!"

"KEN-CHAN!" Chii, Ryou and the bug dashed up to him, lying on the floor.

"You...you cheated...!"

"So what?" Mummymon laughed insanely, and Ryou glanced around,

"Oi, where's your girlfriend?"

"She couldn't make it, too bad..." he strained to stop laughing, "...she couldn't witness me killing him."

"Not today!" Worm-chan jumped in front of Ken, as if he was...protecting him.

"Bug?" Ken asked weakly.

"...You won't hurt him, Mummymon!" The bug screamed.

More digimon jumped out, from the windows, bleachers, the floor. All of them looked like either giant red dinosaurs or giant black dinosaurs. All of them plus Mummymon vs. Wormmon, the little bug...

"Worm-chan...?"

Four giant, dragonfly-like wings unfolded from Wormmon's back.

"Huh? AH!" The Angel Ring suddenly unfolded, seeming as if the metal cut straight out of his skin this time, "AAH?!"

"What...?" Ryou and Mummymon seemed to mutter in unison, "...no way...Evolution...?"

The Angel Ring was glowing, a digital code of sorts streaming from it and circling Worm-chan.

"EVOLUTION!" Ken screamed. From the code emerged a much bigger digimon, around eight feet tall, having human-like form, green and black armor, the dragonfly wings, two giant, sharp claws, and two red eyes.

"Stingmon."

"...what...?" Ken muttered, collapsing again when the Angel Ring folded back into his arm, "...W-Worm-chan...?"

'Stingmon' seemed to stare at him for a moment, then he gave his Partner a slight nod. "Whoa...wait!" Stingmon had began running into the giant mass of dinosaurs, known as (Ryou had said) Tyrannomon.

"Worm-chaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!!!!" Ken screamed. One of Stingmon's claws suddenly emitted a blade of light. Ken's eyes opened wide with shock as the digimon pulled his blade-arm back...

"SONIC STRIKE!" The blade came forward, glowing with a holy, ominous light, straight into the heart of one monster.

"Whoa..." Ken stared, though his eyes hurt from the blast. Stingmon fought all of them, even Mummymon, who eventually joined in the fray.

The dinosaurs' blood poured across the entire gym room floor, and finally, the last standing were seven Tyrannomon and Mummymon.

"You..." the insane phantom muttered, pointing to the seven henchmen behind him, "...evolve, now!"

"What!?" Ryou screamed.

"EVOLUTION!"

The seven Tyrannomon's data began to combine and take shape... A gigantic orange dinosaur appeared, wearing a metal helmet with metal wings that matched. It had two silver claws, looking as if it could destroy anything in a swipe...

Like Stingmon.

"METALGREYMON!"

"Metal...Greymon...?!" Ken repeated, staring at the towering digimon. Stingmon looked rather shaken, also. The digimon had broken through the roof of the building, due to his size. It lifted a foot...

Stingmon flew as fast as he could up to the beast's face, took his blade-arm and,

"SONIC STRI-," Before he could attack, MetalGreymon threw him to the side with an amazing force.

"STINGMON!!!!" Ken screamed, tears filling his eyes. Sting somehow managed to stand, and realized he was quite a ways away from the school. The towering MetalGreymon began to move forward...

"Ken...!" He staggered to his feet and flew as fast as he could...

"You can't beat me!" Mummymon laughed as he watched his servant approach the humans. Ken closed his eyes as the towering beast neared...

"AAAAAH!" There was a sound of crashing metal and blood spilling. Ken opened his eyes and saw Stingmon standing in front of him, as if guarding him, his blade with the assisstance of another arm-blade stabbed deep into the monster's foot.

"Sting-chan..." Stingmon nodded, and pushed forward. The beast fell, and Mummymon somehow converted him back to data and used his gun to absorb it.

"Damn."

Stingmon still guarded his partner, along with Ryou and Chii. Mummymon scowled,

"Stupid...but I came here to annihilate you...and that's WHAT I SHALL DO!" He laughed again, charging at Stingmon with full-force. The two collided with their weapons, the blade arms and gun, crashing.

"You won't hurt Ken!" Stingmon scowled and took his arms back to strike...

Unfortunately...

"HAHAHA! DIE!" He lifted his weapon and fired right into Stingmon's chest...

"STING-CHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!" Ken closed his eyes as he screamed, hearing the digimon's blood splatter everywhere and convert back into Wormmon.

"I-...itaii...." the bug muttered, glancing up at Mummymon, aiming the gun at Worm-chan's head. The weak little digimon closed it's eyes,

"You won't hurt him..." Mummymon ignored it, and fired, laughing....laughing...

"Worm----chan..." Ken was paralyzed with fear, anger and saddness. The phantom laughed like mad, Worm-chan was on the floor...he looked...dead, his head was shot up, along with many other pieces of him...

"Damn it, I thought he would have a Code...??!" Suddenly, a blue laser shot came clear across Mummymon's face. There Ken stood, his lasers out, the one aimed at the fiend shaking slightly, as if he were to break at any minute...

"Mummymon...you will be defeated..." Ken muttered, his voice cracking. Mummymon noticed the laser had created a cut under his right eye,

"Stupid kid. Here, if you wanna play..." He released a few more Tyrannomon like it was no big deal, "...then we'll play!"

"Damn you...damn you to Hell..."

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch that...." Mummymon mocked, jumping onto the shoulder of one dinosaur.

"...I...I..." Ken seemed to angry, frightened, everything, to speak. He searched madly for words, "...I....I...."

The surge of power rose inside him...his anger began to rise...he was blinded with rage...power... He suddenly clenched his fists, closed his eyes, looked at the floor (avoiding eye contact) and screamed,

"I AM YOUR MASTER!"

"What?" Mummymon immediately stopped laughing. Ken scontinued to screech, his fists shaking and avoiding eye contact with anyone,

"I AM YOUR MASTER! YOU WILL OBEY ME! LEAVE NOW OR SUFFER HORRIBLY!"

He stared, confused. Everyone was. They were also scared.

"I...I'm..." Ken hesitated, and glanced at Worm-chan's condition, "I AM YOUR GOD!"

"God?"

"GOD?!" Everyone was even more confused and scared.

Suddenly, two giant metal wings unfolded from Ken's back, still staring at the floor and fists shaking.

"Wings...?!"

They glistened in the room's darkness and the light of the waning moon above. From each metal feather, tendril-like drills emerged and savagely attacked each Tyrannomon, drills digging straight into their bodies. Blood everywhere. They were reduced again to data that returned to Mummymon's gun.

"Ahha?" He was scared, very scared. The child in front of him had two giant metal wings, and from each feather was a tendril-like drill, and now each one was covered in blood. The child scared him...but why had he called himself 'God'?

The drills returned to Ken, but they still were about three feet out. They folded in front of him, protecting. Ken drew his laser,

"...I am your Master."

He shot one time, and it was what may have been the luckiest shot in the history of gunshots: straight into his right eye. He held it in pain, blood began to flow.

Ken still didn't dare to face him.

"Will you at least look at me then?!" He screeched, while moaning in agony. Ken smiled a little bit, which startled everyone,

"...I don't need...to gaze upon an underling."

Mummymon scowled, but instead of fighting, he ran-like the coward he was.

The drills and the wings folded back in and disappeared. Ryou and Chii stood, scared. Ken opened his eyes and looked up. The entire gym was pretty much decapitated, for the exception of three walls. The windows were broken, the roof had a gaping hole in it, one wall was completely gone, and blood was everywhere, blood and organs of the digimon slaughtered in the fight. Wormmon was still on the floor, bleeding and unconscious. The floor was broken in most spots, like where MetalGreymon had walked. The moon shone above in the azure sky. The stars glistened a little brighter. Few words were needed for the situation...

Pain. Sadness. Hurt. Anger. Rage. Metal...

God...

Why did Ken say that? Why...? Speaking of which...

Ken stared at his hands, still shaking, not now with anger, but...fear? Yes. Fear.

He fell to the floor and closed his eyes. Worm-chan managed to open his eyes,

"Ken...chan...are you...alright...?"

Ken didn't respond. Ryou and Chiisu stepped into the decapitated gym hesitantly.

"Ken? Are you okay?"

Blood fell from the gash between Ken's eyes, hitting the floor, mixing with the many digimons' blood.

"Ken...?"

His hair looked different...it was sticking up on end...he looked remotely like...his brother...

"Ken-chan...are you...huh?"

A little sound came from Ken...he was crying. It got louder. He covered his face with his hands and hit his head on the floor, crying. He couldn't do anything else. He couldn't think, breathe, anything...

Cry. All he could do...cry.


	3. Part III Death

What's wrong with me...? Why...was I crying? Of course, Worm-chan was horribly hurt...but why...

Why was I crying?

Part III DEATH

Chiisu had used Ryou's cell phone to call his father. He had come to drive them to a place Ryou called 'home' in the Genjitsu. It was hard to get Ken to stand, let alone drag him out to the car. He was still sniffling, crying, but Chii's father didn't ask about the blood all over him. Instead, he asked Ryou,

"Where to?" Chii got in the front with his dad, and Ryou sat in back with Ken,

"...away from the city, of course..." he gave him directions to his Genjitsu home, and they started the long, long drive.

Ken sat, holding his knees and not looking at anyone. Chii suddenly blurted,

"Hey, where's Worm-chan?!" Chii's dad looked confused, but kept driving. Ryou coolly responded,

"I sent him back to the Dejitaru to be incubated and healed. He'll be fine. Angemon is a miracle-worker in this type of thing..." 'Or at least I hope he is...'

Chii became silent once more, and Ryou noticed Ken, still crying, but quieter.

"Don't worry, Ken...Wormmon'll be fine..." Ken was still shaking also. Ryou put an arm on his shoulder,

"It's alright...you don't have to be scared...it'll all be okay..."

"...promise..." Ken muttered quietly, only Ryou heard him.

"...I can't do that..."

"Promise me..." Ryou hesitated,

"...fine..I promise, It'll all be okay."

Chii nodded and looked back at them, "Yep! We're all together and we won't be defeated by anyone! 'Cause we're the Digimon Gaurdians!"

"The what?" Ryou asked. Ken returned to his quiet sobbing. Chii nodded with a little smile,

"Yah, I named us that, 'cause we're the one's who're gonna save the Dejitaru from Millenniumon!" Chii's dad asked quietly,

"Chii-kun...may I ask what you're talking about?"

"Uh..." Everyone in the car hesitated.

"Is it...some sort of game?" Chii glanced at Ryou, Ryou glanced at Ken, who had suddenly came up to say-calmly-,

"Yes. Y-Yes, Kimura-san, it's a game."

Ryou and Chii glanced at him and each other again, and the three of them nodded weakly.

"Ken...Worm-chan'll be alright. That I can promise..."

"Everything else, Ryou...?"

"Everything....?"

"...That...we'll defeat Millenniumon, save the Dejitaru, and defeat the Fighters...?"

Ryou didn't respond. "Right here, Kimura-san." They had reached their destination. It was the countryside, and where they had stopped was a cabin-like house. This was Ryou's home in the Genjitsu, where he stayed if he ever had to come to the World.

"Kimura-san, please come back in a day or two..." Ryou said to Chii's father, "...we shall call you when we need you."

He nodded, and drove back into Tokyo, which was about two hundred miles away.

Ken could barely stand, so the other two helped him inside.

"He should really get some rest..." Ryou then noticed Ken's hair, as he trudged into one of the bedrooms. It was sticking up on end, on it's own.

"Ken...? What's with your hair?!" Chii must've noticed too. Ken glanced at them both for a second,

"..." he was silent, then muttered, "...I'm...tired..."

"Ken-chan..." Ryou walked up to him, "...we'd...better clean you up a bit, though..." Ken glanced at Chii, who nodded with a look of 'uh huh!' then looked at his clothes; torn up and filled with blood, both his and the digimons'.

"...Alright," he muttered again, changing his course of trudging to the bathroom. Ryou tried to grab his arm to help him, but Ken recoiled in pain, "Ow! Don't touch me!"

"Sorry...I didn't know your arm hurt..."

Ken closed his eyes and slammed the door behind him.

"Will you be okay?" Chii asked.

"Yahhh! Now shut up!" His voice was loud, but still a bit shaky from the incident.

Ken opened his eyes slowly. Had he even been asleep? He shook his head and looked around. It wasn't the cabin. _Wh…._he thought…_Where am I…?_

It was a vast, colorless beach. Everything was dark, everything was cold, desolate, alone. Beside the beach was, unsurprisingly, an endless, dark ocean. It stretched farther than Ken could see.

He stepped into the water. It was weird, he began to hear voices…was it the back of his mind?

Was it Osamu? The voices sounded evil, maniacal. Ken suddenly looked at his digivice, and glared at it. He then had an idea…

Water filled his lungs, and he opened his eyes. Dark, but he knew he was in water, for sure. He tried to scream, but couldn't. He felt a hand tug on his hair and pull him up...

"AH!" He gasped for air, and when his vision returned, he saw Chii and Ryou.

"Thought you couldn't..." Ken then had a fit of screaming,

"GOD! WHY CAN'T I HAVE ANY PEACE ANYMORE?!"

"We're just worried about ya. We can't help it," Chii laughed a bit and Ken sank lower,

"...please, go away."

"Why? We're all guys here!"

"Go away."

"But..."

"NOW!"

Osamu copied his brother's idea of sneaking out that night. He felt a little awkward, especially after what his brother had said. The words were burned into his mind's eye: I WISH YOU'D JUST DISAPPEAR! He sighed and figured he should talk to the smartest person he knew. He figured adults he knew were idiots, so he went to see Shirubi at the Kyoto Hospital. She was intelligent enough, he figured, to help him out with his inner problems. He took a step outside into the cold, desolate, silent-but noisy night.

When he arrived at the hospital, he felt even more awkward. Who knew why? Osamu was a strange child, and very intelligent, although, he had severed himself from everyone else. Solitude was the way he liked it, but if he liked Shirubi with him, that meant he wouldn't like solitude… He hated to contradict himself so many times in just a few minutes as he took hesitant steps inside.

Inside, Osamu found that the hospital was in a state of panic. An inmate was actually holding a lighter and some gasoline. The doctors had their drugs in syringes and no other weaponry. He shook his head, even as the man threw the gasoline tank and then the lighter, screaming,

"LUCIFER WILL REIGN SUPREME!"

There was a sudden blast of flame. The fire spread quickly, it got into the electrical wiring of the hospital.

"Oh, God...!" Osamu thought, suddenly feeling the impulse to run in instead of out, "..Shirubi!"

It spread very, very fast. The entire place was trying to be evacuated, but Shirubi was nowhere to be found. He tried to locate where she would be. Running into a hallway, he saw a strange sight.

Shirubi stared wide eyed at the flames. She looked...scared. She backed slowly away, but then started to walk forward, into the flames.

"Sh-SHIRUBI-CHAN!" He screamed, clutching her arm and running as fast as his physical being would let him. She kept staring back into the flames, seeing the smirking children turn away from her and disappear into the flames.

"Bye..." she spoke, as if in a trance.

Osamu stopped by the entrance and concocted a sort of plan. He dragged her by a nearby tree and ducked down.

"Here," he stated, pulling off his sweater and handing it to her, "wear this."

"W...Why?"

"They'll be looking for you," he pointed to her white uniform, from the hospital.

"Oh..." she hesitantly took the sweater and the two ran off...

Ryou and Chii sat on opposite sides of the table, Ryou clicking away at his laptop computer and Chii staring at him, drinking hot cocoa. It seemed tranquil...but they all knew much was going on at that precise moment. Still, it was quiet. Nice...

"Hey, Ryou-san..."

"Mm?"

"...what's up with...Ken's hair...?"

"His hair?"

"Yah...it got all spiky...and-well, weird..."

"Something about that scene wasn't right..."

"Huh? Well...except the hair..."

"And wings."

"And wings..."

"And drills."

"Drills...SHUT UP! JUST TELL ME WHAT THE F..." Chii covered his mouth, "Sorry, but can you tell me what the heck was going on?" Ryou was hesitant,

"...To be honest...I only have a slight idea..."

"What?!"

"Hello?" Wormmon's voice chirped through the computer, "Do I have access?"

"Alright, Worm-chan, retaining access...now. You have been cleared for access."

". . " Chii had no idea (thus, the weird Blinkey face ) .

Suddenly, something emerged from the computer...Worm-chan!

"Worm-chan!" Ken came running out of the bathroom, wearing one of Ryou's pajama outfits, if you're wondering.

"Ken-chan, I told you he'd be alright," Ryou said, but then noticed Ken crying again. His hair was wet, so it was flat against his head. He hugged the little digimon tight,

"Worm-chan..." He was crying again.

"Ken-chan..."

"I...was so worried that..." his sobs interrupted his words, and Ken was unable to speak.

"Maybe you all should just go to bed..." Ryou smiled and the rest of them smiled back. Smiling. It almost seemed to be a foreign concept nowadays. Everything had a tone of darkness all over it, constant death, suffering, crying, pain...

But out of the darkness was light, a smile during the time of misery and pain...

After the fire scare, Shirubi and Osamu had escaped to a great place: a resturaunt. Shirubi was hesitant about going in, being the fact she WAS an escaped inmate of the local (but now defunct) mental hospital. However, Osamu convinced her to at least have some water and have a good discussion with him. She came in and the two sat down.

"Shirubi...?"

"Hmm...?" She questioned, fingering Osa's sweater with her nail-bitten fingers.

"...Uh..." he didn't know quite how to begin. Even with his vast vocabulary, Osamu Ichijouji was at a complete loss for words. Maybe he was tired. Maybe he ?

"Osaaaa-chan..." Shirubi was out of the hospital and hanging out with Osamu, who was rather quiet. Shi kept on interrogating him,

"What's wrong? You look...worried..." Osa-chan glanced at her across the table. They were eating out, and it was a quiet, beautiful night. The atmosphere was happy, in both the city of Tokyo and the café.

"My brother...he...he's missing."

"Uh oh...when'd you last see him?" It was weird, since they were the only two under the age of 15 in the café, and it was rather late, around two in the morning. Obviously, Osa-chan was able to leave whenever he pleased, or something... He took of his glasses and closed his eyes,

"Just...a little while ago...but I'm getting worried..." Shi muttered,

"Osa-chan...hearing what you've told me, I'm sure he'll be okay. Besides, perhaps he's just sleeping over at a friend's house." He opened his eyes and stared, glasses still off,

"Ken?! Making friends THIS quick?" Shi laughed a bit with a nod. Osamu shook his head and the two ate their early, early breakfast. Shi suddenly stopped eating...she looked frightened.

"What...?"

Back at Ryou's cabin...

"Worm-chan...?" No response from the sleeping digimon. "Worm-CHAN?!" It was almost a yell, but the little green bug finally awoke,

"Whaaat...!? I was having the nicest dream..."

"I just had a weird one...in fact..." Ken closed his eyes and thought a moment, "...a lot of weird stuff has been happening..."

"Ken-chan?"

"...I mean, back home, I had just a typical, average life. Sure, my brother got on my nerves and my parents think I'm insane...but then I get to Japan...and all Hell pretty much breaks loose..." He glanced at his two lasers, digivice, and torn-up, blood-stained jacket on the other side of the room, his backpack next to the items, "...this...this can't be..."

"Speaking off odd happenings..." The bug lit the room with the flip of a switch on the nearby lamp, "...you looked different."

"Excuse me?" The bug nodded,

"Yah...your hair...and your eyes..."

"My..." he questioned, "...my eyes?" Once again, Wormmon replied with a nod,

"Hai...you looked..." He hesitated and glanced at Ken, "..._insane._"

"What?!"

"...Like...you would've done _anything _at that moment...to completely beat Mummymon to dust..."

"I was angry..." Ken's eyes filled with tears, "...You were hurt."

"That doesn't give you reason to go crazy!"

"I WASN'T GOING CRAZY!" He screamed, his voice having that...different tone to it, "...I was..." it returned to normal, "...scared...you were hurt...he deserved to feel the same pain."

"Ken-chan...I think we both need some sleep...it's been a weird adventure thus far..." Ken muttered as the bug turned off the lamp,

"And it's only gonna get weirder..."

"JANISUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU?!" The girl assassin looked up from her wire-soldering work to see a whining, crying Mummymon, holding his bandaged right eye,

"THAT DAMN KID!! HE SHOT MY EYE!" Janis merely didn't respond. She just kept soldering.

"JANISU! ARE YOU LISTENING?!"

"Hai-hai. Sure, I am." She was wiring Senjo, the top-secret hacker system for the Chaos Fighters. She was one of the developers of the system. "I'm surprised you're dumb enough to confront one such as him."

"Ex-CUSE me!?" She sighed again,

"That 'Ken Miraki', or whatever his name is, is certainly one with a power to be thought about. How the hell he pulled out an Angel Ring on us, who knows. But it looks like this takes strategy," she tossed the iron to the whining digimon and turned to walk out, "...and I'm gonna go think for awhile."

Mummymon muttered something angrily and began to wire. Another Chaos Fighter digimon walked up to him,

"Man...she's always saying 'she has to think'. WHAT'S HER FREAKING DEAL?!"

Mummymon hesitated, "I don't know..."

Everyone at the cabin was asleep, with an exception of Ryou. He had traveled back to the Dejitaru through his laptop. He needed to find something...

"Here it is..." He muttered, arriving to a large, castle-like building. This was the Dejitaru's History Library, guarded by a winged beast digimon named Nefertimon, and a little white digimon named Bokomon resided in the library, for he knew about nearly every story of the Dejitaru's past.

"Ah, Ryou Akiyama," Boko stated with a smile, "so nice to see you again." Ryou was less happy, for he was too focused,

"Boko-chan, I came to look for something." The little digimon nodded, taking a book out of the carry-pack around his waist, "Alright, what're you looking for in particular?" Ryou glanced around at the others in the library, so he found the need to whisper, "I'm looking for anything on Machina." Bokomon nearly fell over in shock and question,

"WHAAT?!" "Shhh!!!" Luckily, no one had _really _noticed. Boko was talking nervously,

"M-Machina...? W-Why do y-ou need tha-t?" Ryou tried to calm him down,

"Look, I can't tell you much...but I just really need to read up on it. Something...happened..." Boko was calmed down, but still nervous,

"Well, Machina probably has nothing to do with it..."

"Perhaps it has everything to do with it," Ryou stated, looking as if he was about to threaten to strangle the digimon, "Now I need a book!" He hesitated, then flipped madly in his book,

"Ah, here we go. Dictionary, 112th Level, 3rd to the right, old text..."

"I can barely read old text!" "Too bad, Akiyama, it's the one of the only books we..." "_What?!" _"Well...heh...oops...'kay, there _is _indeed another book...but it's a bit old..." "I...don't...care!" Boko was now whispering,

"Alright...I have it. I'll come with you to find the other book...then I'll hand it to you."

"Agreed." There was a giant, wooden, winding staricase that went to the higher levels of books, and there were about 150 levels. It was rather high up, but Ryou and Boko weren't afraid. Fortunately, he eventually found the book, and Boko nonchalantly handed him the other book. Both were old, and you could notice it by first glance. They were also heavy, moreso than normal books. Still, they were history books, and they were what Ryou needed.

He waved 'syao' to Bokomon and the library, and headed back to the cabin before his 'friends' had woken up.

"Lezzsee..." Ryou nodded, glancing at all the books together, "It seems...Machina isn't a type of engergy after all... I'll be damned...It's..." his heart suddenly stopped. His words glanced over the page and stared agape at it:

_During the Pre-Wartime Period, the Organization known as CHAO-Fi (Chaos Fighters' Organization) conducted a project known as the Amethyst Project. Not much detail is known about this project._

_There was then Project Excellence, toying with the human mind._

_There was then the Pre-Angelus Project, more widely known as the "Deus ex Machina"project. "Machina" is Latin for "God from Machine". In older times, this was a statement given to..._(Ryou couldn't read this)..._redeeming the world, maintaining order, and above all..._

_Destruction._

Ryou stared. It was all coming together. Ken, the wings, the guns, the summoning, the odd voices in his head...

_An ongoing project. No one knows of its existance at the time of this writing. _

'Wait a sec...' Ryou pondered, 'This isn't an old book at all! Then...why was Boko trying so hard to keep it a secret...?'

_The CHAO-Fi "Deus Ex Machina" project is a way to emulate the Divine Machine of ancient times..._

_Deus ex Machina is a killing machine, created for one purpose: to serve Chaos and become a vessel of..._

Ryou stared long and hard, then threw the book against the wall.

"It...It can't be true!" He screamed, "IT CAN'T! IT JUST CAN'T!"

"What's all this yelling about?" Worm-chan whispered from the stariway, "Keep yelling, you'll wake us all."

"Gomenasai."

'Dammit, Boko...'

"Shi?" She had stopped eating and was completely still, "Are...are you okay?" She opened her eyes, shivered, then smiled,

"Yah...yah, I'm fine! ..."

"Sure?" She nodded.

"Just a bit of worry myself...I should go..." She got up to leave, but Osa-chan grabbed her hand,

"Don't go. Like you said, won't it be okay?" Hesitate,

"I...guess..." She sat back down with a smile and the two began to eat again. "By the way..." she added, "...why do you want me around so bad?"

"Oiii Janis!" She sighed with exhaustion,

"What is it, Mummymon?!" She questioned with a slight tone of anger.

"Think of that plan yet?"

"How could I in 5 minutes?!"

"Oh..."

"But I do have a bit of a..."

"Janisu-chan?" Both turned to see Arachnimon, standing angrily behind them, "What're you two talking about?"

"Nothing."

"Really?" She took out her staff and aimed it at Janis, "I think you two are plotting something..."

"Nothing against you," she coolly responded with a shrug, Mummymon nodding vigorously after. "It's a plan to get rid of that kid. Y'know, the one your boyfriend here lost against..."

"HE'S NOT MY BOYFRIEND!!"

"I DIDN'T LOSE!"

"Heh, the Boss thinks different," she sighed with a turn to walk away, but the two Fighters took out their weapons, "Please. WHY should I fight you two? I'm a lot stronger than both of you, so why would you try?"

She strode away,

"Can I ever get any privacy anymore?" Little did she know, Arachni was coming in to attack. She pulled her arm back, summoning a sphere of flame and shot it straight into Janis' back...

Shi stopped eating again, but this time started coughing.

"Not this again," Osa-chan sighed, but when she fell out of her chair, he was worried. Very worried.

"Shi-chan?!" No answer but coughing. "SHI-CHAN?!" Something was odd, her eyes were dilated and she was coughing up blood...

Janis quickly unsheathed her blade, and a fight began.

'That's so weird...' Arachni thought during the battle, 'How...How did she take that...without getting hurt?!'

Shirubi was coughing untcontrollably, and Osa had no idea of what to do.

"Shi!! Shi! Say something! What's wrong!?" Shi slowly lifted her head off of the floor and spoke quietly,

"I...I...I--need...to go..."

"Wha...what?!" She stood up shakily, and began walking in a zombie-esque way.

"S...she needs me..." Her eyes were darkened, her voice was blank. Osamu did nothing but stare. He sulked in his seat and raised his arm,

"Check please."

The next day was a bit less...hectic.

"Alright, so are we going or not?!" Ken screeched, slamming his fists on the table. Ryou rolled his eyes,

"Well...y'see, we're gonna separate..."

"WHAAT?!" Chii and Ken hollered, and Worm-chan continued,

"Yah, Ryou-san explained to me last night that the Chaos Legions' Gates are separated throughout the Genjitsu. Thus, we must split up in order to get in."

"Get in?" The bug nodded,

"Haii. It has very high security, so it will be tough to find each Gate. Still, I think the answer lies in a certain train in a certain station..." he handed a slip of paper to Ken, "...so we're trusting you to go alone."

"WHA-?! ME?! WHY ME?!"

"Well, Chii-chan has to get back to school, I need to check back in with the Rebels for an emergency meeting of sorts, so that leaves you..."

"Besides," Worm-chan added, "It'll be less conspicuous if one person goes instead of a group." Ken was about to retaliate, but instead grabbed the sheet and strode out.

May I add, they were no longer in the cabin. Chii's father had come and brought them back to Tokyo, where-using Ryou's laptop, had excaped to Deji. A bit confusing, since Ken had to go back to the Genji...ah whatever.

"Okay." Ken had arrived, guns attached to his belt along with his digivice, at a train station in a city he had never heard of, and couldn't remember name of. It was a giant blue building, and trains were coming and going every two minutes or so.

"Alright...the 9 Train..." he walked into the structure, and there were about fifty trains, all of them labeled with letters, double letters, or a few with numbers. Confusing. Even moreso with about two hundred people.

"Oh boy...no wonder Ryou said to leave early...it leaves at 5, and it's..." he stared at the clock on the wall and nearly shrieked, "FOUR THIRTY-FIVE?!" He glanced around nervously, and began to run, once again, like a maniac.

'Maybe I should ask...' He shook his head, 'Nah, if these are Chaos Fighters, they wouldn't help me...'

He stopped running and sighed. Well, maybe it'd work.

"HELLO?!" He screeched to the ceiling, loud enough for basically the whole building to hear, "CAN ANYONE TELL ME WHERE THE NINE TRAIN IS?!" They all, everyone in the building, stared blankly. Ken laughed nervously,

"Please?"

Everything returned to normal, and Ken was once more lost. That is, until...

"Hey!" He turned, eyes welling up with tears, to see a girl with blue hair. She had a pair of metal goggles tied around her neck, and-strangely enough--red eyes. 'Wait a sec...' Ken thought a moment, and it clicked,

"Janis?!" She smiled with a nod,

"Yep." Ken was confused, so he did what came naturally; he drew his guns. Janis backed away a bit slowly,

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold it, kid!" Ken clenched his fists,

"Why does everybody have to call me THAT?!" Janis hesitated,

"Alright, what do ya wanna be called, then?" He hesitated,

"K-I mean..." More hesitation. Thinking he shouldn't use his real name, the next thing crossed his mind, "Miraki. Yah, call me Miraki." She stared blankly,

"Miraki? Sounds more like a last name to me..." Janis shrugged, "Whatever, c'mon..." she turned to walk.

"Where're you going?!"

"You wanna get to the 9 Train, ne?" He hesitated,

"Ah-yah! Yah, I do."

"Then follow me..." she began walking, and he hesitantly followed. She muttered, "...Kid."

"Insanity."

"Sanity."

"Football."

"Kick."

"Kick."

"Somebody."

"Hit."

"On."

Ryou and Chiisu, bored out of their minds, were playing a game of sorts: Ryou would say something, and Chii would say the first word that came to mind. Sure, it seemed like mild psychology, but still, it passed the time.

"Ken."

"Insane."

"Ryou."

"Jerk."

Ryou suddenly screamed, "WHAT?! JERK?!!?!"

"You said say the first thing that popped into my head!" He scowled, and continued,

"A-...School."

"Insert curse word."

"Just one word."

"You said say the first thing that came into my mind."

"SHUT UP!"

"MAKE ME!"

"Grrr..."

"Cat."

Ryou smiled, his eye twitching in anger. But still, the two continued.

"Worm-chan."

"Useless." The bug left the room silently and started to hit his head on a nearby wall.

"Dejitaru."

"Weird."

"Genjitsu."

"Weirder."

"Janis."

"Haven't seen her, all I know is that she sounds cute." Ryou glared,

"Alright, we're stopping this NOW!"

"Whyyy?!"

"Because I'm really beginning to hate it!"

"Why?"

"Just...because!"

"You like Janis?"

"NO!"

"Why?"

Ryou hesitated, "Well, she's an assassin who is trained to kill and it's my job to..."

"Still," Chii muttered.

Ryou glared again, "D-Don't you have something you need to do?!"

"School's out for today. I have nothin' else to do." Ryou kept glaring,

"Please...just do something!"

"...uh, 'kay...my turn then."

"What?!"

"Ken."

"Weird."

"Chiisu."

"Idiot."

Chii nearly fell over in anger, but he kept on.

"Cyberdramon."

"Friend."

"Janisu."

"Villain." Ryou hesitated.

Chii laughed a bit, and the two were silent. Then Chii spoke once more,

"Janis..."

"SHUT UP!"

"This is the train," Janis muttered, approaching one of the many trains. "Well? Getting on? It leaves in 15 minutes."

Ken was confused, "...why's you...lead me here?"

"Felt like it," Janis sighed with a shrug. All of a sudden, though, a massive explosion shook the place.

"What was--!" Janis was interrupted by the emergency intercom,

"I'm sorry, but all of the departing and arriving trains will be postponed until a giant monster outside has evacuated the premises. Please remain calm-," of course, no one did so. It was all a panic scene, people running around screaming and whatnot.

"So these aren't Fighters?" Ken asked. Janis stared blankly,

"You really think we'd all be here? There's just a train that leads through the Gate. A train, meaning one, and nobody really goes through it anymore..."

"Oh..."

"Still works, I'll explain later!" She began running, and Ken soon followed, hollering,

"WAIT UP, JANIS!"

"What's THAT?!" Ken screamed. The two were on the roof of the station, staring down a giant digimon. Well, actually two. One was a giant cactus with boxing gloves ("what?" Ken muttered blankly) and the other was a ghost, reaper-like demon with a scythe. "Janis...how do we-huh?! Where'd you...AHHH!" The giant cactus was suddenly straight in front of him, aiming a puch straight for him. Oh boy.

"AAAH!!!!"

"SHOOT, YOU MORON!" Janis screamed from a higher ledge. She was standing on a nearby building's roof. Ken did as said, grabbing his guns,

"Alright---!!" He fired straight at the cactus...nothing. Just blue laser shots reflecting off the spikes.

"Miraki! Those spikes!"

"Spikes..." Ken muttered, "..Spikes...? How do I...?" He immediately dodged a strike from one of the monster's large hands, and thought, "How do I get the spikes out...?"

'Can't help 'ya, Kid...' She thought, quickly putting the metal rimmed goggles around her eyes and unsheathing her blade, Sakura. The demon's scythe cut down on it's speed since it was so heavy, so Janis let him strike, and she'd backflip around him and strike from behind. 'Damn it, doesn't he know about Data Rewrite?! AH! Stupid--!' She struck the digimon with her blade and went back to her ledge.

"HEY! MIRAKI!" She got his attention from dodging the cactus' punches, "CHECK THIS OUT!"

She straightened her goggles with her index finger and grinned. She jumped high, Ken's vision was blurred by the sunlight shining down from above. He strained his eyes to see. She came down with her giant, metal-rimmed, quartz blade right into the digimon with the scythe, straight through.

"Whoa..." he sighed, being able to see the last part, the two half-pieces of the digimon falling to the ground. Janis used her blade to absorb the data. Green blood dripped from the blade as she smiled.

Back to Ken's problems.

"AHH!" He nearly fell off the roof of the station, but he still managed to stay on.

"MIRAKI-KUN! DO-YOU-KNOW-HOW-TO-REWRITE-DATA?!"

"DO I _WHAAAAAAAAT_?!" Janis sighed with exasperation and sat on her ledge,

"You're on your own. I don't work with amateurs."

"JANIS-AAAAH!" He was thrown back by a successful punch by the giant punching cactus. Every bone in his body hurt.

"Ow..." He felt like crying, but would it have really done any good? No. Even so, tears did well up in his eyes. Anger, not fear or sadness. Not even pain, anymore anyway.

"I have an idea..." He muttered, standing up unsteadily and raising his left arm. From it, the Angel Ring folded, metal first, then the crystal pieces, finally the halo. He aimed it at the cactus.

"Play time's OVER!" The crystals aimed at the beast, and the halo began to glow.

"There we go..." Janis smiled, making sure she still had her goggles on.

"DATA REWRITE!" The light extended from the Ring, straight into the cactus. The light seemed to penetrate the digimon, straight into it and manipulating it. The towering beast wiggled and began to lose it's spikes throughout it's body. It's limbs began to evaporate. Unfortunately, Ken couldn't see what was happening, for he was blinded by the excruciatingly blinding light. Janis merely stared blankly, for obviously the goggles were doing their job.

"Looks like I gotta handle the rest of this..." She lifted her blade once more...

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" The light ceased, and the blade came straight thorugh the beast's head.

Ken could see it this time. She had that effect again. Whether it was the sun reflecting off of her, or the blade piercing through the head of the digimon, the blood splattering everywhere including the two humans, she looked...almost heavenly. Maybe it wasn't even a question of almost.

For that one moment, even if it didn't last very long, it was...perfect. She had executed the cactus with extreme precision and speed, along with grace and style. Amazing...oddly enough, Ken could just stare once more, like at their first meeting.

Janis. There was something about this assassin that was certainly...something...

After the weirdness had worn off, Janis spoke with Ken near the train, getting ready to leave.

"You couldn't see, ne?" Ken nodded. "Yah, you can be blinded if you keep doing that with your eyes unprotected, so...here." She handed him a pair of glasses, yellow-rimmed with purple-tinted lenses. "They're yours. I've grown attached to these," she pointed to the goggles tied around her neck once more. Ken was confused,

"Why're you...?"

"I know-helping you. I just think that you're an amateur, but you have the potential to be quite a formidable opponent...so I might as well teach you the basics."

"Arigatou..."

"Don't you _dare _say 'thank you' to me...!"

Ken was about to reply, but refrained. The train soon came in.

"C'mon. Let's just get on..."

"Wait a sec, how'd you know that I wanted to go..."

"Why else would you be here?!"

"Good point..."

Janis sighed, "You're hopeless." Thus, the two boarded the gray metal train.

The train ride was normal until...

Janis had instructed him to use his digivice to get through the Gate to the Chaos Legion, as Janis explained was called La Maison de Saint Marie. He did so, but it was weird. The train was glowing, bright lights were everywhere. In fact, if she hadn't told him to put on those glasses, he'd probably be blind. Leave it at that.

"Janis! WHAT'S GOING ON?!"

"We're just passing through the Gate," she muttered, holding her black device in her hand. The others on the train evaporated, and soon it was just Janis and Ken. And the blinding lights.

"JANIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIS!" He screamed, and everything was blank.

"That's it!" Chiisu got up and walked outside (remember, he and Ryou are in the Dejitaru!).

"Where're you goin'?!" Ryou asked.

"I can't wait, I wanna meet this Janis Sukaraki girl!"

"But-!"

"G'bye! "

"Ch-CHI-KUN!" Chiisu had ran out of the building, and currently running nowhere, just away from the site.

"CHIISU!!"

"Fiine," he muttered as Ryou and Cyberdra came up (Cyber had just come into the scene) breathless, "you can come."

"Rrr...but you can't really get anywhere without a way to get through the Gates...and you'll need a partner..."

"Partner?!" Chii began to jump around happily, "WEEEE! I GET A PARTNER!!"

"Okay...we'll need to get to Primary Village, then you can chose one as your Partner..."

"YAY!"

"But it'll be a baby." Chiisu immediately stopped looking happy and looked at him with a wide-eyed expression,

"...what?"

"Y'see, Ken needed a Digimon like Wormmon (who was standing by Chii at this moment) because he needed him. Well, the two needed each other. Ain't that right, Worm-chan?" The bug was silent,

"..L-Let's not talk about it...please..." Chii was confused as Ryou continued,

"Anyway, since you're new to this...you should have a friend who's new to this, too."

"So...it'll...be...like..." he hesitated, then began jumping again, "...a game!"

"Game?" Ryou glanced at the other two Digimon with a mix of confusion and embarrassment. Chii nodded, a wide smile imprinted on his face,

"Mm-hmm! Like those games where you take care of monsters, then you raise them to battle other monsters! A lot like Poke'mon, but I hate that, so...but there are other games! Like Monster Rancher and..."

"SHUT UP!" Ryou screamed, the two monsters remaining silent with somewhat humiliation. "L-Look, Primary Village is just over there..."

"Awww...that's too far..."

"TOUGH LUCK! Ever hear the expression 'easy things usually aren't worth doing'?!"

"No..."

"WELL 'YA JUST DID! C'mon!" Ryou stomped in the direction of the town, the two Digimon following silently. Chiisu hesitantly began walking then, and they were on their way.

Primary Village was quite a big place, but it's inhabitants were little, as Ryou had said-little baby Digimon. Chii almost threw up at their unbelievable cuteness, but he managed not to. He jumped around once more,

"Really, Ryou?! One of these guys can be my Partner?!" Ryou nodded, a vague smile on his face. Chii glanced around the field, various buildings, baby toys, and cradles strewn about. Little blob-like creatures hopped around, parading in rainbows of colors. Chii was overwhelmed,

"Ryo-Ryou-san, could 'ya please help me pick one out...?" Suddenly, a white ball-like creature with little wing-like ears (like on Janisu's helmet) hopped across his path,

"HEY! Who're you?!" Chii glanced at Ryou, who then whispered,

"Well, tell him your name!"

"M-My name's Kimura Chiisu...I'm looking for a Partner Digimon to help find my friend and Janis Sukaraki, the--..." The little Digimon suddenly jumped back a bit,

"JANIS SUKARAKI?! THE MOONLIGHT ASSASSIN?!" His screech was followed by a nod from Chiisu, and the other babies cowering in fear.

"What?"

"Janisu..." one little Digimon muttered, this time a red one with three little horns, "...is highly feared by all in the Dejitaru..."

Chii then began to yell,

"Hey! But that's just what she wants! You can't just give in...you can't...be afraid!" The little white Digimon standing in front of him looked hesitant while Chii continued,

"I promise that...my friends, like Ryou, Worm-chan, and Cyberdra-chan, and I will defeat this Assassin, and there'll be no more fear then, ne?!" They all glanced at each other. One other Digimon spoke up,

"What about Millenniumon and the Fighters?" There were nods among the group. Chiisu merely scoffed,

"Them, too! We'll defeat anyone who stands in our way! Now, WHO'S WITH ME?!" They all hesitated, but the little white Digimon nodded,

"I will."

"Arigatou. " Chii smiled, "So, what's your name?"

"My name's Upamon."

"Upa...Upa-chan, can I call you that?" Upa-chan nodded. Chii turned to Ryou and the other Digimon,

"Alright! Let's get going!"

"Where?"

"Doi! The Chaos Legion!"

Thus, the group left Primary Village, in hopes of finding Ken, Janis, and Millenniumon.

"I...Itaiimy head...huh? Where...?" Ken glanced around, not knowing where he was. It was a dark beach of sorts...the sky was dark gray, the water reflecting it. There was no light. All there was...was darkness.

"Hello?" He asked, his words disappearing into the shadows. 'Is this the Chaos Legion...?' He glanced around, "Janis? JANIS?!" She was nowhere in sight. "Oh, man...this ain't good..." He fell to the sandy ground, unable to think if what to do. "Huh? What's that?" He took his glasses off in effort to see it. A bright light was shining from the middle of the ocean in front of him. "Light?" In a place like this? It was a straight beam, shooting directly into the sky. It was a calm, but brilliant light...

He wanted to step forward, but found the water to feel...not quite like water...It felt more like...what a shadow would feel like, if it were a liquid. Still, he wanted to find out what was shining deep within the depths, so he kept walking, into the water. It was so weird...

It reached a depth eventually where he couldn't walk; he had to swim. However, he wasn't scared. He was too focused on finding out what was glowing in such a place. Ken found it even harder to swim in the shadow-water, it was more dense than regular water. Down, down, down...it was getting darker and darker, he couldn't see it...

But then, he could.

Again, Osamu Ichijouji strode about the street, alone. His immense lonliness was becoming a little too much. He figured he had to talk to Shirubi about it or he'd kill himself. He sighed. Osamu kicked at a rock that crossed his path. The rock tapped a pair of shoes in front of him. He looked up slightly, seeing two big, red eyes staring at him deviously.

"So...you're Osamu Ichijouji. I'm not impressed."

Soon, as he had found, "it" wasn't an "it"...it was a "she". A girl. She looked unconscious, but how she could breathe in such a place like this...well, he figured that's how she passed out, being stuck down there...

How long had she been down there? Was she even alive?

Those questions were completely out of his head at that moment. Something was different, in this scene of the sleeping, shining girl and him.

He couldn't see anything but white and her outline, but something was...different...about that...aside the fact she was glowing...

Suddenly, there was an earthquake-like shake.

"What the-?!" A giant creature emerged from the depths below, right out of the sands. Ken was about to panic, but all he did was grab the girl by her arm,

"C'MON! WAKE UP!" She had no response. Thus, he was self-obliged to swim back to the surface, the girl dragging behind him. Back on the shore...

"Hey! Are you alright!?" Through the erupting chaos, she was still shining with the holy, ominous light, though he could see her now. Whether or not she was wearing anything, he could barely tell. She seemed like an angel, or some holy being...perfect...

"Ah..." Ken stared then, wide-eyed, at what then emerged from the water. A gigantic, dinosaur-like being, much bigger than SkullGreymon and MetalGreymon _combined_. It was the largest, most massive thing Ken had ever seen in his life. The black dinosaur had metal covering all over it's back, spikes and claws of pure, dark titanium. The massive being stared at him, it's blood-filled teeth turning into a slight grin. All Ken could do was stare back, scared out of his mind. He didn't even dare to move, for the beast, in one clean, minor swipe, could kill him with ease. The dark water reflected him and Ken, and that's all it was. Ken, the shining girl, and this monster.

He was afraid. Afraid of the truth. The truth? The truth was...this was the most powerful, most feared being in the Dejitaru Sekai...one of the main reasons Ken was brought to that World...

Millenniumon. This was Millenniumon.


	4. Part IV Judgment

Part IV JUDGMENT

Ken still stood in shock at the monstrous being. He set his guns to the ground, and put his left arm behind his back. The digimon smiled wider, and Ken released his Angel Ring device.

"DATA REWRITE!" The streams of light engulfed the beast...

"Ken-chaaan!"

"Ken!"

"Miraki-kun!!" The traversing party of Chiisu, Ryou, Wormmon, Cyberdramon, and Upamon continued. They were around where they had been last time, fighting Arachni and Mummymon in the graveyard outside the Gate to La Maison. Chii shuddered as they approached the Gate.

"Now, be careful," Ryou warned, "...this'll lead to another World. The Dark World. I know not much about it, so just be careful, ne!?" They all nodded in response.

"Alright..." all of them exhaled and walked in...

Millenniumon laughed madly as the light merely ceased.

"What...?!" Ken muttered, the Angel Ring disappearing suddenly.

"You think my data can be rewritten?" The beast stated, and Ken jumped back a little bit,

"Y-You can talk!?" The beast nodded,

"Indeed. I am a God. My data is eternal."

"Eternal...God...?!" Ken couldn't avoid it, but the monster suddenly grabbed him with one of it's large, titanium claws. Fear mixed with confusion, the monster just holding him, nothing more.

"Foolish human," it muttered, crushing Ken's spine with no effort, "how dare you enter this World...and disturb it."

"Huh? Disturb...?" He glanced back, through his pain, to the girl, who was still mysteriously glowing.

"Yes. You're toying with forces you don't understand, boy..." It's grip tightened, and Ken found it increasingly harder to breathe each second. He winced and screamed at the pain, the bones in his arms, legs, and spine cracking.

'I—If only---If only I could....!' Nothing went through his mind, nothing except the excruciating pain. He couldn't get to his guns, also being crushed by the force, and there was no sign of relentment from the beast. Suddenly, in the back of his mind, he heard it. The faint ring that had haunted him from day one.

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing_

"I....I can't..." He muttered, teeth clenched, finding some way not to be completely broken by the monster's claw, "...you...you're the one, who got...me inta...this!!"

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing_

"SHUT UP!" He screamed with his moans of agony and torture. That's all it had been, torture. Why was it him, a normal kid who had no experience in fighting, and not an experienced warrior?! Everything was fading fast, too fast. Death. The aura of death circled.

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing...._

"...tell me...why'd you choose me...? ...why?!"

_...because, Ken..._

Some of the pain relented. Millenniumon stepped back in shock as he continually tried to close his fist on the human.

_...you're the one. The one to rule this World.A God._

"A...a..." he stammered, feeling a sudden power in his arms and began pushing the gigantic hand away from him for an escape, "...I...I...I'm Master of this World..." The rage, the ravenous power that once again consumed him, his hair sticking up on end, as if being shocked, repeating, "I AM MASTER OF THIS WORLD AND BEYOND!"

The two metal wings appeared, folding out from his back in near the same way as the Angel Ring.

"F---!"Millenniumon cursed as Ken floated to the ground. He glanced at the girl, still sleeping soundly, and returned his eyes to the opponent. Millenniumon's hand had a large gash in the palm and claws, some of which had been cut off due to the sharpness of the wings, the digits drifting lower and lower into the dark depths.

Once again, it was the sight, only this time, it was different. Ken was...a different person. His spiky hair, cold blue eyes, and metal wings were obvious new traits, but there was also a new aura around him. It resembled wind, constantly spinning around him as if for protection. He gazed up at the towering beast and scoffed.

"You think you can defeat me?!" It screeched with a howl of laughter as it suddenly began to laugh maniacally, tearing each digit on each claw off one by one, falling into the water once more. It laughed endlessly, and Ken just stood confused. He knew, however, that he couldn't defeat this beast with mere DIJITs alone. Not even an Angel Ring. No.

This...had to be done right.

Osamu had been thrown back by the force of Janis's arms. She didn't even bother to have her sword out.

"Too bad the Boss told me to fight you..." She sighed, '...strange...he usually tells me when I need to kill them or just teach them a lesson, so it seems...'

He managed to stand, blood streaming from his mouth. Janis laughed,

"Pathetic human." She immediately stopped laughing when Osamu suddenly had a large, metal scythe in front of her neck.

"Say that again," he ordered, his glasses catching the glint of the darkness, showing insanity.

"Pathetic human."

He unfolded his wings for combat, and the massive, many finger-missing, bloody entrail-dripping monster lunged at him, still laughing, screaming,

"DAMN YOU TO HELL, HUMAN!"

Ken merely jumped to evade, and stopped in midair, sighing,

"You call yourself a digimon?" He muttered, "Pathetic. Nothing but a mere fool..." It growled, now leaping into the air, and it was unavoidable this time. Millenniumon's bloody, unmentionable-matter oozing hands wrapped around him and both were slammed underwater. The wings weren't helping, since the beast had torn off all it's fingers. Ken knew the lasers wouldn't work on it, either. The water tasted of it's blood, oozing all over, and Ken could barely see through all of the gore to his opposer, who was still happily cackling away.

No longer able to breathe much, Ken scowled and managed somehow to fly up out of the water, escaping the sinking beast, Millenniumon. Ken's clothes, face, hair (still up on end) and wings all dripped with the blood filled dark water and other unmentionable substances. He smiled, and the monster was even more confused.

"Watch and learn, pathetic subordinate, how a real Master does it," his smile grew wider, showing his teeth and forming an evil-looking smile. Through the image of holiness, the red blood and gore covering him and inner self startled all who saw the being, being Millenniumon and...the girl. She was slightly awake, vision blurred, but only able to see the red-soaked, tainted angel, which-like her-was glowing bright like a star in the sky, and a wind enveloped him.

"Who...?" She muttered, then fell back into her sleep.

Ken raised his left arm, not for the Angel Ring...

"There's no way..." Millenniumon then screeched in horror at the sight...

"Huh?!" Ryou's cell then went crazy.

"What's wrong?" Chii asked when he answered it.

"WHAAAT?! We'll----we'll be on it!" Ryou clicked a button, and began running, "C'MON! WE'RE ALMOST THERE!" "WHERE?! WHAT THE F--- IS GOING ON?!"

"Ken----Ken's utilizing something...something big..." He thought, running as fast as he could, then thinking,

'The Legendary Weapon...Redeemer?!'

Indeed, there was a new weapon in Ken's hands. It was metal like his wings, a platinum staff, with an amethyst crystal at the top, which was adorned with two little white, feathery wings, which then extended to several feet. From the crystal appeared a blade of clear, blue light. A green beam surrounded it. This blade, the staff, was called the Redeemer. The blade, Redemption. Ken smiled wider, the blade of light held for battle. Millenniumon groaned, but even so, lunged to attack, readying a beam of green flame from it's mouth. Ken came down, blade and all.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!" He screamed, coming through and dicing the enemy clear in half. Then, to finish the job, he took the seven-foot blade of light, did a quick turn-holding it horizontally, and slicing it again. A perfect cross, a perfect kill.

"To indeed be a God," Ken laughed returning to the ground, walking up to the fallen, maimed beast, right up to it's in-half head. It was a disturbing sight, from each side of the head, a half a brain the size of Ken's head (each half) was seeping into the metal-colored sand. Still having the elusive blade, Ken stabbed one half of the oozing, towering monster brains, and examined it about two inches away from his face. Slimy, each lobe and section falling apart.

"Hmm..." Ken wondered a moment, then using his bare hands, the blade disappearing, to completely unravel, tear up, and lie the piece on the sand, looking like a giant, sickly-pink worm that wasn't moving. He also did so with the other half. Why he'd done it, who knows? Something was odd about this _new _Ken, he was evil, purely evil, while at the same time, the identical twin of the innocent, yet apathetic and annoying, naïve child he was all the time. The difference was most certainly there, it was just hard to know if it was him or...

Someone else...a completely different person...

Returning to normal, Ken glanced again at the girl, still ominously glowing at the side of the beach. Staring at his hands for a moment, he began walking over to her.

Suddenly, something pushed him back. It wasn't too strong, so he kept going.

Again, another thing pushed. It was like a gigantic gust of wind, continuously keeping his destination out of reach. Still, he kept going, even though the going was slow.

_You have been warned, Ken Miraki Ichijouji..._

"Huh?" He questioned as soon as the winds stopped. The voice was that of a male, but... there was a tone of wickedness in his voice which seemed to have no origin.

_There is no turning back now. Your destiny's path is about to change...heed my warning, child. This girl..._

"Who...Who are you?!" He yelled, pulling out his guns, "Show yourself!"

_This girl will take you to Hell and back, no matter what you do to try and stop it, she means nothing but trouble..._

Ken glanced at her, worried expression on his face, "Hell and back?" Another voice, a quiet, yet confident voice, then came from an unknown source,

_Things will not be easy, and things will be hard. Scars will never heal, frienships will be broken, and limits will be breached. Never the less, believe...Believe this girl...is your guide. The guide to the truth. The truth that was forever hidden behind your eyes, never to be seen..._

"Hidden...?"

_Remember her. She...is your guide, your truth...Don't let them take it..._

That was it, the voices ceased. He even tried listening for more...nothing. He stared at the girl one more time, still shining and sleeping quitely. "Hell and back...truth...that was hidden from me...take what..?" He was about to ask her something, but then noticed his hands, filled with brain-slime, blood and even some traces of the brain itself. He went back to the dark ocean, washing his hands slightly, then approached her.

"...Uh...sumimasen..." (excuse me) he asked quietly, kneeling down to her, "...are...you alright? Hello?" He was about to tap her on the shoulder, but stopped himself. Something odd, he knew, was going to happen as soon as he touched her. However, he ignored the insecure feeling and shook her gently by the shoulder,

"Sumimasen...?" All that happened was that she immediately stopped glowing as soon as his hand touched her soft skin. "Uh...alright...hey, are you okay?" No answer came from her, still unconscious and sleeping.

Perhaps at the absolute best time, Ryou, Chiisu, Wormmon and Upamon had found their way there.

"Hey, Ken-cha-EEEEEW!!!" Chiisu and Upamon immediately screeched at the sight of Millenniumon's destroyed brain (and a naked girl, for that matter), and Ryou and Wormmon stared,

"How..."

"I dunno, but Ryou-help me wake her up!" He commanded, and he strode over.

"How long has she been asleep?"

"Ever since I found her at the bottom of that ocean," he pointed to the endless darkness, and Ryou scoffed,

"Right, anyone who goes in there has either died or gone horribly, criminally insane." Ken gulped nervously,

"..E-Everyone?" Ryou nodded,

"Every case, there has been no exceptions..." Ken looked worried for a moment, remembering when Millenniumon had held him under the water.

"You okay, Ken?" Worm-chan asked, done examining the brain of the former enemy. Ken nodded in response, feigning a smile, "Yah. I'm okay." Suddenly, Ken's expression changed, and he began screaming in pain.

"Ken-chan! What's wrong?!"

"M-Millenniumon..." he started, collapsing to the ground, but continuing, "...he tried to crush me with his hand or...something...ow..." he fell, unconscious.

Janis and Osamu had continued to be in a large scale battle in the back roads of Tokyo. Janis, insanely fast and powerful, was trying to get a slash in with her large blade, but he easily parried it. Where the scythe had come from, he didn't know. He didn't care, because he had it and knew he'd win. He suddenly slashed down, and everything was silent.

She was on the ground, lying there. Blood leaked out of her mouth and out of a large gash down the centre of her body.

"...luck..." she coughed, "...I will never lose to a pathetic human...never...NEVER...!" With the scythe disappearing, Osamu picked up the assassin carefully, ignoring her futile attempts to escape his grip and her blood all over his arms.

"C'mon," he demanded while she glared at him.

Ryou typed once more at his laptop computer, Chiisu sat nearby, Ken lay sleeping on the floor, still unconscious, and so was the girl.

"Ryou..." He suddenly threw his hands into the air with a look and sigh of exhaustion,

"I knew it...the way he explained it, it's a complete impossibility for a human his size to not be crushed by Millenniumon!" He slammed a fist on the table, "IT MAKES NO F---ING SENSE!!" Chiisu recoiled in shock at the words Ryou had decided to use,

"So, that's what I sound like when I say it?" Ryou nodded from hiding his face on the table, hitting it occasionally.

"Would you two please be quiet?" Worm-chan muttered, Upamon also sleeping in the corner of the room.

"Ryou, do you think..."

"Hmm?"

"That what Ken said was true?"

"...what?"

"When he said he was God, Master..." Ryou then mumbled to himself,

"That's another possibility," Ryou sighed, then added aloud, "I'm going back there, y'know, to check for evidence..."

"But---!"

"Look, if they wake up, just tell 'em where they are (Chiisu's house), and what happened. That's it."

Chii shifted in his chair and Ryou was gone.

Osamu sat nearby the sleeping assassin, not bothering to tend to her wounds due to the fact they were healing themselves, strangely. He had a book of anatomy in his hands, always studying or something book-related. He sighed and stared at Janis, sleeping soundly with her back to him. Curious, he decided to study.

"Let's see here..." he muttered quietly, feeling Janis's side through her shirt, "...kidney..." then he moved his hand to her stomach, "...intestine-slash-stomach..." slowly, he moved his hand, under her shirt, "...rib cage-slash-lungs..." then, his hand still underneath her shirt, reached her heart. Osamu, being a boy of pure logic, felt something strange. Under his hand was a soft area, beating slowly at the same rate of the heart. It was soft, as mentioned, and he could cup his hand around it. He figured out what he was holding a few moments after and blushed, but strangely didn't remove his hand. The quiet, pleasant 'thu-thu-thu' of her heart and feeling it with his hand... was like feeling the existance of a soul within her. He put his other hand underneath her shirt and placed it on the other half of her chest. Janis woke up with a start.

"WHAT THE _HELL_ ARE YOU DOING?!" Osamu merely kept staring, carefully feeling where his hands were. What he stated next was in a rock-hard manner,

"Take your shirt off." Janis stared in both shock and awe. Then she started laughing.

"I'm not asking you," Osa stated clearly, angrily, tyrannically, "...I'm ordering you."

Janis leered. Her eyes were a violent, cold red as she replied with a hiss,

"No." Osamu leaned over, his hands still beneath her shirt and face about a few centimetres away from hers,

"Last chance before I use force..." She merely leered some more. Instead of replying in words, she thrust her arm into his neck, then the other in his forehead. He barely realized he'd been punched, but he was busy. He quickly removed his hands and snatched her shirt, tearing it up and over her head. She fought about and tried to land a few more punches, but it was futile. Janis, the Moonlight Assassin, ultimate fighter, now had her entire upper body exposed, and hands tied up above her head by her own shirt. She growled and fought some more, but Osamu tried to calm her with his soothing voice. He took off his glasses and placed his right hand over her heart.

"It's strange," he muttered, "...maybe people do have souls." She said nothing in reply. Her face showed absolute contempt as he kept feeling around her chest. It was violating and...too much.

"Get...your...filthy...hands...offa...me..." she breathed quietly. Osa didn't seem to hear her, dragging his fingers along her silky soft skin.

"So soft..." he kept muttering, "...so soft..."

"Get..your...FILTHY...HANDS...OFF...ME!!!!" She screeched, suddenly breaking her arms free. Osamu, though, still atop her and having the obvious upper hand, snatched her hands and held them down to the matress. He smiled. It was a smile that wasn't quite his...

Or was it...?

He began to laugh while she stared in disgust and shame.

"I thought you'd put up a better fight than _this, _Shirubi-chan..." her eyes opened wide with the final part of the sentence. He continued, "...so, you don't want me _touching _you, eh? Fair enough." He smiled again, but she felt uneasy. She just wanted her shirt and to leave... and maybe kill him. Okay, kill him.

"I won't use my hands then..." he stated, and moved his head closer to her skin. She writhed in agony and screamed loudly, but she knew that nobody would help her. This was payback for all the times...everything she'd ever done...it had all come down to this, this...kid...

She felt his tongue along her chest and she shivered. She tried to get her arms free, but no use. Her eyes began to well up with tears as she felt him get everywhere...

"STOP IT!" She pleaded. "STOP IT, PLEASE!!" He was being aggresive, she was pleading for him to stop. She felt low, defeated. His eyes were staring right back at her, wide and alert. A playful tone was in his voice,

"You need to put up a much better fight than _that, _Shirubi..." She shook her head and her body, but he kept on.

"STOP!! STOP! STOP!" She screeched over and over, but he seemed to be enjoying it somehow. Her exposed body was drenched with saliva, including her face and her chest.

"God, kill me now..." Janis pleaded to herself. She was in immense pain and torment, beyond almost any human could bear. Osamu stopped and looked at her, with a grin on his face. He was hanging right above her as he said,

"You are my servant."

"What...?" He suddenly pulled her close to him, and he yelled to the ceiling,

"O, goddess of divine beauty. Bestow unto me your divine corporal pleasure."

"What the..." He looked back down at her, leering but smiling deviously,

"You are my servant. You will do what I say." She responded, as if in a trance,

"...I...am...your servant..." Her eyes were open wide, but blank. Her red eyes were dull and lifeless. She slowly sat up, and stared straight ahead. Osamu lied back down and smiled a bit.

"Well...?" Janis's eyes then looked intense and focused. She placed her arms on his shoulders and crawled upon him. He smiled and muttered something to himself. It was no more than a game. He was torturing this assassin, making her do something she didn't want to... how? A mystery...

Janis soon stared him in the face. Her hair fell on him while he stared back. Then, with a moment of hesitation, she grabbed the back of his head and their mouths made contact...

Janis suddenly snapped herself awake and pried away from his grip along her back. However, the boy overpowered her, grabbing her about the neck and slamming her head into the nearby wall by the bed several times. Blood began to flow out of her ears and her mouth as he held onto her with one arm and great force. The other hand... was slowly slipping her skirt off. She writhed, she screamed, she fought, she tried. Nothing seemed, however, it would help. Soon he had removed his own clothes and she was back where she had been, lying atop him but his arms now tightly across her back, nails digging into her spine. It was beyond rape. It was beyond anything.

Suddenly, miracle of all miracles, Otoko and Megumi Ichijouji, Osamu and Ken's parents, stormed into the room. They had obviously heard her screaming. In the darkness they saw the horror. Their son, Osamu, lie on the bed with a girl above him, holding her tightly and bleeding. Her blood dripped onto his body and into his mouth, and he seemed to _like _it. Tears streamed down her cheeks. She couldn't move. He kissed her. She tried to fight him, to do something, but couldn't. Both of them were stark naked.

In an attempt to stop the madness, Megumi suddenly pried the girl away from him (with too much effort), bleeding and all. She wrapped her jacket around the unclad little girl, perhaps about Ken's age, and hurried her out of the room.

Before that, though, the two had exchanged glances. Janis had seen Osamu's _real_ eyes. Not the ones hidden behind the glasses, not the ones of a feigned kindness, not the ones always hidden in a book. No, his eyes were full of desire and what one could call evil. The amber fire inside them pierced her very soul as she dashed out of the room with Osamu's mother. Otoko stared him down,

"What...in the absolute hell...!"

Osamu merely answered by covering himself up with the bedsheet and smiling at him, a wide smile that one could define as...

Scary.

Megumi Ichijouji helped the injured girl get dressed. She looked young, about ten or eleven. But her eyes, full of a violent red of confusion and rage, made it obvious she was, in fact, much older.

"Are you okay?" She asked. The taciturn girl responded with no words. She merely ran to the door and out of the apartment.

"What," Otoko began, "_in the absolute, f---ing hell were you doing?!"_

Osamu, now dressed and sitting at the kitchen table with his parents, shrugged and grinned in reply.

"_What in God's name...?!"_

"That's enough!" Osamu ordered. An awkward silence filled the kitchen before he spoke again. "You have no idea. Neither of you do. That girl is, in fact..."

"In fact, what...?" Otoko murmured. Osamu smiled again,

"An angel, or something not of this world." He hesitated, narrowing his cold amber stare at his parents. "She doesn't deserve this kind of world, anyways. And neither do I. There are so many pathetic humans here, it makes me sick..."

"Osa--" Magumi shouted, "what are you talking about!?"

He closed his eyes. "How to say this..." he stood up and strode to the door. With that, Osamu's final words to his parents were:

"You're nothing but f---ing insects to me."

"Alright..." Ryou examined the fallen, bloody, rotting remains of the tyrant Millenniumon, none of his questions were being answered, sadly. All he saw was the decapitated brain halves, four sections of the large body, and red all over the place. "Wait..." He examined one fingerless claw, in the palm was a deep, deep slash, perhaps shattering some bones in Milleniumon's hand. It looked brutal, more than anything _Ken _could've done. Ryou then found another piece of evidence: a little silver feather. It was a normal feather at a glance, but it glistened in the darkness, so bright that Ryou knew it was from Ken's wings.

"Hmm...." He muttered, lifing the feather with a hand, "Ah, it's heavier than a normal feather...ita!" A quick pain came across his fingers, the feather's edge had created a decent-sized cut along the tip of one of his fingers, blood oozing out.

Ryou ignored the blood, but he was still confused and thinking, "That's how..." Then he averted his gaze and stared at the water, which was dark, with red floating across it. Blood. There was, of course, Millenniumon's, but there was another presence of blood...Ken's. Meaning he had been submerged in the evil dark water...

"Ah...I'm sure a child can't become corrupted..." He smiled slightly, even though he knew the truth.

"HEY!" He turned. Janis Sukaraki, the girl with the imperial outfit, metal eye covering, armor, and crystal blade.

"J-Janis?!"

"Where is she, Akiyama?!"

"Who?"

"YOU KNOW WHO I'M TALKING ABOUT!" Janis screeched, pulling out her blade and aiming the tip at Ryou's neck, "NOW TELL ME, WHERE IS SHE?!"

"Janis, I don't know what you're talking about..."

"That girl, baka-chan!" She sighed irritably, "...she was here..."

Ryou's thoughts returned to Chii's house... "Ah, yes. But Ja-chan, may I ask why you're looking for her?" She stared at him through her metal helmet, but she took it off then, revealing her violent red eyes,

"It's a real long story, Ryou-san."

"So's mine, but if I can condense that..."

"I dunno how to explain it..." she closed her eyes and looked at the ground. "...I...got hurt...okay...and...and..."

"Janis..."She looked embarrased.

"Anyway, she's not here?" Ryou nodded, "Alright...oh, and Akiyama," she added, turning to walk away and putting her helmet back on, "...that kid, Miraki. Keep him safe, alright?" He gave a hesitant nod and Janis disappeared from veiw in a flash of light.

"I had really better get back to Chiisu...who'd want him to be the first thing they see when they wake up...?"

Ryou had gotten back to the Genjitsu a few hours later, but after Ken had awakened and it was soon the middle of the night. He was almost there, but a little ways to go.

"Why didn't I leave my computer on...?!" He scowled, trudging along the street-light lit streets. Chiisu, meanwhile, had gone to bed and the girl hadn't woken up still. Why was Janis after this girl? She seemed ordinary, aside the fact that Ken had mentioned she was glowing. Speaking of which...

"Huh...what...?" She opened her eyes in the middle of the night, glancing around in the dark, moonlit room. "Ah!" She whispered/screamed, pulling the sheet around her. She then noticed a set of clothes placed next to her, so she snatched them quickly. There was a blonde haired boy in the corner, sleeping peacefully next to a green bug of sorts and a little white ball-like creature. Making sure no one in the room was awake, she breathlessly stepped out of the room, still holding the clothes, and slid into the bathroom across the hallway. It was dark and silent, so she made sure her movements matched. Putting on a large white t-shirt with pink lining and black shorts, she stepped out of the bathroom, a bit less cautious, for she wasn't naked anymore.

She peered around the corner, seeing into the kitchen, and... huzzah! The door! She slinked across the wall, one foot at a time, breathing scarcely, and almost at the door...

"Ah?"

"AH!" She covered her mouth, she was at the door, but as soon as she had tried to open it, Ryou had come in, turning on the lights with it. She had been pushed back to the floor with a light, nearly unheard 'thud'.

"Well, look who's up."

"A---Ah...." she dared not to talk, and struggled to stand.

"How're you feeling, may I ask?" She got to her feet and tried to slide past Ryou. Alas, it didn't work.

"Excuse me, but do you know anything about the Dejitaru, by any chance?" She stopped trying to get past him and hesitated. By now, I should really explain what this mystery girl looked like. She had blue hair like Ken and Osa-chan, and life-filled green eyes. After her hesitation, she shook her head,

"No. I don't know what it is. Really. Though Osa-chan..." She added, "Has mentioned it before..."

"Osa-chan? Osamu Ichijouji, ne?" She nodded.

Ryou stood ahead of her, and she was staring at the floor. "I'm...kinda a close friend of his..."

"Really? Well..." He remembered what Janis had been doing; looking for this girl, "...listen, you, you're in danger here. Janis Sukaraki is after..."

"Who's she?" Ryou hesitated and nearly fell over,

"J-Just be careful..." She sighed, then he glanced at what she was wearing, "Ah, Chii's sister's old school uniform fits you well..."

"Huh?"

"Yah, that kid in there?" He pointed to the room she had slinked out of, "He's Chiisu, Chiisu Kimura. His sister, Christi Kimura, is about 19 now, and she's studying in America. You're wearing her middle school outfit."

"Chiisu...Kimura..." She engraved the name into her mind.

"Need me to walk you home?" She shook her head,

"No...besides, I need to find Osamu-san...I'm sure he's worried..." She began running out the door, then Ryou remembered what he wanted to ask,

"Hey! What's your name?!" She replied happily, but esoterically,

"My name is Memory."

Osamu, leaving and vowing to never speak with his parents again, soon found himself in a land of desolate, dark flames. Unsurprised, he glanced about. Logically, he figured there was nothing for him to fear. Shirubi, Janis still lingered in his mind. He tried as hard as a human mind could to ignore it. An ominous presence was soon behind him.

"Who's there?!" He hollered into the flames, and he then turned around to see where the laugh had came from. It continued laughing. The voice was coming from a luminous pink sphere hanging in the air. Inside it, an...Angel? Yes, to what Osamu had figured, a being with wings, 10 or so, to be exact.

"Osamu Ichijouji, I presume," it, more like 'he', stated. Osa-chan nodded slowly, staring at the encased 'Angel' without blinking. Soon, his eyes began to water from staring, so he had to blink.

"Ye-Yes," Osamu gathered all pieces of courage he had inside himself and spoke confidently, "Yes. I am Osamu Miraki Ichijouji. Now tell me, why am I here...?"

Still night, still darkness, darkness that enveloped the entire city. Ken went into his room quietly. The clock read 2:00 AM. He sighed and dug some pajama clothes out of his closet. "Hmm? What's this...?" Osa-chan's guitar. He hadn't played it much lately, only using it to threaten his little brother, but now he wasn't home, neither were the parents. He didn't question where they all were, for to be honest, he was of course worried, but in a deep down place inside him...he wasn't. He _liked _them gone. Ken hesitantly picked up the black guitar, holding it carefully in his hands.

"Let's see..." He had never played an instrument before in his life, especially a guitar. Osa-chan had never let him touch the thing, but now... wasn't there. He smiled sneakily and strummed some of the strings, making a quiet humming sound.

"Cool," he muttered, not feeling the need to whisper. He strummed again, making another polite sound. He smiled, pleased at the progress, and flopped onto his bed, still holding the guitar and strumming it gently. He seemed to be humming a tune along with the notes, making it up as he strummed,

"Hmm…hmm….hm…_Kodoku…to jiyuu…_hmm….hummm…" he strummed some more, "_Uraomote…_" He nodded at the first line of his 'song' with a look of minor satisfaction. "_Togireta kokoro…_uhh…_kakushite, Me wo tojita mama ten aogu…_huh…sounds about right…" he strummed a bit more on the guitar, keeping a beat to the music by tapping his foot on the floor quietly. "_Tsuyosa to…_ah…what…oh- _yowasa kami hitoe, Mune no naifu migaite…_err…yah, that sound right, too…" he smiled a bit more, and continued his tune, "Next line…uh…" He closed his eyes, then continued the verse, "_Mugen no chikara shinjita no sa…_huh…" He opened one eye and glanced at the guitar, and he urged himself to continue, "Hmm…next line…" he noticed his glasses he had received from Janis, and had an idea, "_Honne misezu ikiteta kamen kabutte…_" He stopped momentarily, then muttered, "_Kitto, kitto, kitto sou… sa…_ne…will that work…I guess…_kitto, kitto hitori shika inai jibun wa kono yo de…_" Why he was singing and playing guitar, even muttering words to a song, wasn't normal behavior for Ken. In fact, he was acting strangely ever since the whole thing began…

"_Motto, motto, motto tooku, Motto, motto, sora no hate made kake nukete iku only one…_" He stopped abruptly and analyzed what he had just said, sang, and played. "Might as well finish…" The rest he sang and played without stopping, as if in a trance.

_Fuan to kibou irimajiru_

_Unmei ni sakaraezu ni_

_Toki ga kuru no wo matteta no sa…_

_Tenshi to akuma sorezore ga _

_Atama no naka de sasayaku_

_Dochiraka erabu no wa jibun sa…_

_Dakyou sezu ni yaru no sa kyou mo ashita mo…_

_Kitto, kitto, kitto sou sa_

_Kitto, kitto hitotsu shika nai towa no tamashii _

_Motto, motto, motto atsuku_

_Motto, motto honki ni natte kagayaite iku, only one._

There was a brief guitar interval, where Ken thought. Mindlessly playing the guitar and thinking about his situation. The Gaurdians, Janis, he was playing _his brother's guitar_. Oh, well, stuff happens. Ken smiled in that evil way once more and he continued…

_Honne misezu ikiteta kamen kabutte_

_Kitto, kitto, kitto sou sa_

_Kitto, kitto hitori shika inai jibun wa kono yo de…_

_Motto, motto, motto tooku,_

_Motto, motto sora no hate ma de kake nukete iku only one…_

Ken decided, since nobody was around, to increase the volume of his song. He was now singing it at nearly a yelling voice, but he didn't care who heard.

_Motto, motto, motto tooku_

_Motto, motto sora no hate ma de kake nukete iku only one._

_Sora no hate ma de kake nukete iku only one…_

That was it, except for a bit more guitar, then Ken began laughing. Why? Who knew?! Everything the boy did was turning into more and more of a mystery. His laugh was first quiet, then louder, then louder…

He was laughing, something obviously was hysterically funny.

Ken may have been weird, but this…was even more peculiar…

"What're you talking about?!" Osamu screamed to the 'Angel', and his response was another laugh,

"It is true. Since you were born, perhaps even farther back, dare I say, the Revolution, you were destined for it."

"Tha-that can't be true."

"Of course it can…it has been predicted, and here you are, able to withstand the very forces of darkness that would eat away the heart and souls of all humans…all _normal _humans that is…"

"What're you getting at…?"

"Osamu Ichijouji, no, Chaos, you are one…who will rule this World and beyond. First of all, however, you must regain what is yours."

"Regain what's mine..." he repeated. Something clicked in the working gears of his mind, "...Janis."

The being nodded from it's sphere-like prison,

"...And then there's that boy...He is a threat, a threat to all. His power cannot be contained, and he may even destroy himself, but we need you to get the job done…"

Osa again thought, then fell to the ground…he was _kneeling. _

"I am at your service, Lucemon." Lucemon grinned,

"Welcome to Hell, Chaos."

Shirubi, still in the guise of Janis, staggered into her apartment. It was dark, but well kept. She propped Sakura by the wall and lay on the couch. She covered her ears, trying to ignore the sound of the world about her. She felt like dying. She'd just been raped, and had absolutely no solitary person to turn to. Getting to wobbly feet, she made her way to the bathroom. The phone soon rang.

"Who the hell is it at this hour...?"

There are things that happen, and there are things that we want to happen.

She let it ring. There were more important things at hand. Like throwing up.

Shirubi could barely keep herself up. Her outfit and armour was covered in her _own _blood. She vomited on the floor and soon collapsed in it. It was completely humiliating, though nobody was around. Making sure she wouldn't drown in her own fluids, she lay on her side and clutched her knees. She wasn't essentially _sad. _She was alone. The yellow-green puddle was sopped up by her blue hair, sprawled out. Blood seeped out of her back. To feel somewhat human, Shirubi started to cry. And cry. She couldn't stop. She kept coughing up blood and vomit, but she didn't care. The whole world was against her. She was against the world in the first place. Thus began the process of locking Janis away until one fateful moment...

-

"There we go…" Chiisu had woken up with Upamon and Worm-chan, and the three were at work on a project. Ryou suddenly burst into the room.

"Ryou-san?!"

"GUYS, WE MUST GET GOING, NOW!"

"Whyyy…" Upamon asked sleepily.

"There are Digimon…in the Genjitsu!"

The three woke up completely, and then they all ran out.

Osamu walked into Shi's apartment, casual as can be.

"Hey."

With rage-filled, blood-coloured eyes, Shirubi glared at him from her state of complete defeat on the floor.

"Get out of here. Now," she ordered. Osamu shrugged,

"I believe I am the one to give the orders, here, _Janis." _Shirubi leered some more whilest he continued. "In a strange turn of events, it turns out that you and Sakura..."

"Get out," she commanded again, "...before that blade is shoved into your head."

"Again, that isn't the way it is," he corrected, "_I am the one who tells _you _what to do."_

"What the f---ing hell are _you _talking about?" She questioned as she sat up in her pile of vomit all over the floor. Osamu stared at her, a slight grin on his face,

"Sakura is bound to you by a contract, yes?"

Shirubi nodded, summoning the demon blade in her hands, "What of it?"

"Contract of 'unending rage', yes?"

She was baffled, "How the hell should I know? It all happened too long ago..."

"Well," he spoke, striding over to her and kneeling down to her, "let's just say, I know these things." They stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity until he turned to leave.

Just then...

_another Shirubi ran into the room._

Shirubi's red eyes flared at the other Shirubi's. The new one stared, confused, at them both. Shirubi, with Sakura in her hands, slammed the blade into the other's stomach. Blood flowed. Kicking her foot into the girl's bleeding side, she pried the blade out and slashed again, this time at her head. Osamu was confounded as he watched one Shirubi beat the life out of the other in a _merciless _fashion.

After some seconds that seemed like hours of frantic violence, Shirubi dragged her fallen shadow out of the room. She glanced back at Osamu, her red eyes flaming. Her pupil had somehow shaped into a cross over her eyes.

"Don't you dare forget," Osamu warned her as she dragged her prey out of the room by her feet, "...you belong to _me._"

Ken heard the meyhem from the deck of the apartment. He had put the guitar by the bed, and stared out into the darkness of night, being terrorized by many giant monsters.

"Looks like…I gotta shine…" He jumped onto the railing, when suddenly his parents came into the room. It's unknown at this time where they had been, but the fact was they were there and their son looked like he was about to commit suicide.

"KEN-CHAN!!"

He didn't look back. He merely closed his eyes and let gravity pull him down. Wind whipped his face, visions of the buildings behind, across, and all directions around him flashed by quickly.

"…Fly…" Ken muttered, and soon his two metal wings unfolded. His pristine, cold metal wings lifted him high into the air, and he stared.

"I gotta shine…" He smiled again evily, "I am Master…of this World and beyond."

_Sora no hate made kake nukete iku only one…_


	5. Part V Redemption

Through this pain, through all that's happened, it's too late to turn back now. I knew it, Janis knew it, everyone in the 'Gaurdians' believed it. I stood, the innocent child, battled as an Angel, and walked away as perhaps something a little more than what I had been before, and that former self was just a shadow, and I stood once more-completely new, as if born again. Immortal.

Part V REDEMPTION

The people, abandoning their homes due to the monster attacks, saw the metal-winged child hovering above. Ken's parents soon joined in the crowd,

"What…?" His mother gasped, and his father was just confused.

Ken opened his eyes after much thought, then flew over to the congregation of monsters. Who was leading them? Mummymon, none other. He scowled, and landed in front of the crowd of demon-like digimon, and the insane phantom standing before him, laughing madly as he did usually.

"Well, kid, nice to see you again!" Ken scowled, wings still unfolded and ready to fight.

"Hm? What's wrong, child?"

"Stop this. Stop it now," Ken commanded simply. Mummymon glanced at the demons behind him, then they all laughed insanely.

"This World is ours for the taking, boy! Besides, why should we listen to you? Oh, and I haven't forgotten about our little run-in earlier…" he pointed to an area on his face where his right eye should have been, but when Mummymon cautiously removed the bandages, all that was there was a bloody eye hole, nerves streaming forth from it, looking like little red strands of thick hair. Mummymon's left yellow eye was fixed on Ken, with an expression that mixed anger and joy,

"You'll pay for this, kid."

"I'll ask you again, Mummymon," Ken stated, staring at the ground, grabbing his guns and somehow making them dismantile themselves, their metals going straight into both Ken's arms, "Please, leave…before you suffer the consequences for upsetting a God," when he had lifted his head, he had a demonic smile and expression, eyes burning with the flare inside him. Mummymon and his league of demons laughed at the boy once more,

"God? _GOD?! _HA! That's funny, boy…_URK!" _He soon found himself lying on the ground, a sharp pain in the side of his face. Ken had attacked him, the metal of his dismantiled DIJITs must have fused with his arms. Mummymon stood, staring into Ken's maniacal face. The phantom grunted, then pointed to his servants, "YOU! LEAVE AND DO SOMETHING! I'll handle the child…"

Ken smiled a bit more as the insane mummy pulled out his large laser rifle.

"Ready?" Ken nodded, his dark blue eyes glistening maniacally.

Mummymon came forward, trying to slam the arm into him, but Ken's size was an advantage. He merely rolled under him and his attack, standing behind him and striking him severely in the back. Mummymon recoiled in both shock and pain. "Ar…._DAMN KID!!!!!!!!!!!!!" _He shot while running, managed to grab Ken, and only succeeded in shooting up Ken's shoulder. Blood poured, but he "prentended" not to feel any pain. He merely smiled once more,

"Is that all?"

Mummymon scowled, then shot… _nothing!_ His laser rifle didn't shoot. Ken's smile grew wider, his teeth shining. His opponent tried his hardest to fire. He glanced at Ken and then recoiled in fear. His opponent, the child, the innocent, if apathetic child that had no major sins on the big blackboard of life, now stared at his opponent, eyes wide with fury, malice, and wickedness. His expression showed ravenous qualities like that of a wolf, his hair sticking up straight on end. His eyes were particularily different, complementing his new, voracious smile: dark, reflecting the shadows stirring inside his soul. No longer the eleven year old boy, but a little more than a man, a little less than what he had claimed much to be, a _God_. He suddenly lunged, arms forward, slamming Mummymon into the nearby building's wall. Ken laughed a little bit, his eyes still showing his inner maniac. He was insane. Absolutely crazy, unable to control his feelings of hate, rage, and malice. He would win, destroying his opposition and all who stood in his way. All who denied he was God, Master of each World and beyond.

Ken pulled a metal-fused arm back, and slammed it into the gaping hole that had been Mummymon's right eye. His laughter became louder, loudest ever. It was more like a scream, but his voice quivered like a laugh as he brutally beat Mummymon to nothing more than a bloody pulp, curled up on the ground like a cockroach. Ken stopped laughing abruptly, striding up to his fallen opponent.

"Never mess with a God," he smiled and faced each of the new gathering demons. Ken laughed a bit more,

"Bring it _ON!" _He dashed into the crowd, completely slashing each forthcoming demon one by one with his bare hands. He laughed more. Had he not been so cocky, he probably would have spared himself much torment. Even so, Ken could not control any feelings inside him. Everything he did was completely spontaneous, and he was… crazy. No longer the child, but a_ God_.

Suddenly, the demons had seemed to get stronger.

'Yes, yes, _destroy him…' _a voice commanded.

"_WHAT?!" _Ken screamed, feeling each demon claw at him, scratching, slashing into his skin. He screamed, tortured by the demons, now carrying scythes and knives, each shadow stabbing into Ken. The knives of the first onslaught tore into his arms first, cutting open his flesh with _ease_, then –_clang-, _hit the metal from the DIJITs fused to his arms. Then, the next barrage came: teeth, scythes, polearms, any item imaginable, tore into the muscle in Ken's arms. He screeched in agony, living through the terrible pain, no longer feeling his arms. Demons gnawed, slashed, grabbed, pulled, and snatched, destroyed each sinew, muscle strand, and bones in his arms. He stopped screaming suddenly, knowing no amount of screaming could save him from the intense, blinding pain. Demons had their arms lodged in his shoulders, wrists, ankes, waist, and neck, preventing him from moving. Ken closed his eyes, tears falling with the much blood that splattered across the ground with bone, metal, and… _metal feathers_. Ken had forgotten from the intensity and craziness that he still had his wings out, and the demons endured their own pain by the minor cuts of each feather, plucking each one out, _one...by...one_. Ken couldn't explain, think, or anything… He didn't want to, but he managed to force himself to look at what remained of his arms. The demons suddenly let go of him, letting Ken fall onto the ground, onto the mess of blood, muscle, metal and sharp feathers. They cut into his back and what remained of the once heavenly wings. He stared, eyes wide, but expression blank. Gaping holes in his arms, blood poured out, and all he could see left inside his arms were traces of was once bone and the layers of flesh inside. He could feel the gashes in his neck, back, shoulders, wrists, ankles, knees..._everywhere_. Ken stared forward, blank once more.

"What do you say to that, _KID?!" _Arachnimon, the fallen phantom's partner, strode up suddenly, smiling at the boy's condition. Ken glanced at her for a second, hoping for sympathy in that dark place inside him. _No_. Nowhere, not anywhere in the cruel World existed a place or person that cared. He had _no time _to feel sorry for himself. Ken closed his eyes, then aimed his gaze at the bloody ground beneath. Arachni smiled, until Ken did something _completely_ unexpected. _He laughed_. First it was quiet, then it became louder, insane once more.

"You won't ever win," he muttered. "Remember, bitch, I am more than a God, more that Master of the Worlds…" He staggered to his feet, his lifeless arms ignored, "I…AM THE DIGIMON KAISER!"

She staggered back in shock, and Ken laughed insanely, "I WILL REIGN SUPREME, IN THIS WORLD, THE GENJITSU, THE DEJITARU, THE DARK WORLD, ALL WORLDS! REMEMBER, ALL OF YOU! REMEMBER THE NAME THAT STRIKES FEAR INTO YOUR HEARTS! THE DIGIMON KAISER WILL REIGN SUPREME!"

He laughed, with a tone of lightheadedness while bystanders muttered confusedly. Arachni stared, unable to speak.

"What do ya think of that?" He smiled, eyes angry and ready, smile wide as if he were to _murder_.

"I-I…_WHAT?!" _Ken's arms suddenly sprang to life, holding the platinum staff, Redeemer, in his now working hands, the blade ready to strike. "_How…?!"_

"I can do _anything_…I am more than _anything_…" He pointed the blade to her. "En garde, bitch!"

"Stop calling me that!" She unsheathed out her own polearm spear, and the two struck at each other, and Arachni eventually fell to the ground.

"Who…_are you, boy_!?" Ken hesitated and then smiled. Ken's smile.

"I, Arachnimon, am the black Angel of _DEATH!"_ He slammed the blade forward, but she had disappeared mysteriously. "Damn, she backed down…" The demons and Mummymon had retreated, along with the bystanders.

"Hello, then, Kaiser…" Ken turned to see the reason everyone left. An Angel with ten wings, five white and feathery, the other five demon, bat-like wings.

"Well, who are you, I ask…" Ken coolly replied.

"I am Lucemon, and I'm glad to see I have met the Biologica..._at last_..."

"_Excuse_ me?"

Lucemon, the blonde-haired, blue-eyed, child-like Angel, about Ken's size and age (in appearance), came forward with a blade like the Redeemer suddenly, but Ken easily parried it.

"How about a little fight, then, Kaiser."

"You're ON!" Ken smiled, and slashed forward, sending Lucemon back a bit. Both pairs of eyes flared. Both looked like children, but inside, they were fierce, evil demons.

"Ryou!" Chiisu screamed, running with Upamon in his hands. "There's no way we can defeat them!"

The mentor Ryou sighed with a tone of futility as he fired barrages of fire spells at the oncoming demons. There was no way to win... under these conditions.

"This is it..." Chiisu shouted. "We're gonna die...! _We're gonna die!"_

Suddenly, a blade cut straight through the barrage--pink, ethereal...

"J..." the boys stammered, "...J--_Janisu!!"_

The girl, sans the metal helmet, gracefully swung the blade another way, causing more demons to fall. It looked so simple to her, but her eyes were focused. Inside her reddened eyes were black crosses along her pupils. Her eyes were flaring as the demons died, one, by one, by one. Her skirt flipped up as she kicked at a few of them, chimes tied along her neck clanging rapidly. Chiisu had never seen such a sight; a girl taking down thousands upon thousands of opponents, all much, much larger than her, and defeating them with ease. Upa-chan was confounded. Ryou readied his staff for a battle with the assassin. She stopped her graceful, brutal dance of death when no more shadows remained. Janis, more like Shirubi, strode up to the boys,

"You should get out of here. The Lucifer Cult is everywhere."

Chiisu was indignant,

"Bu--But our friend is somewhere...around here...fighting them!"

Janis's eyes closed, reverting back into their normal red,

"He will handle himself. You two, I'm afraid, must find shelter."

"And you?" Ryou added, "Just what the _bloody f---ing hell _is going on?!"

She turned about and started walking away from them, her blue hair swaying gently in the night breeze.

"There are things going on that none of us can ever comprehend... but that kid is in immense danger..."

"What...?"

"AAH!" Ken was thrown back, but he landed cautiously, the drills of his former wings attatching to the broken ground.

"Good. Adaptation," Lucemon put his large blade aside, then lunged forward with blade of white marble. Rimmed by a golden border, it shone as it sliced into Ken's arm, for he had been trying to dodge out of the way.

"_But you still don't get it…do you..._Machina..._?!"_

"What…?" Ken muttered. Holding his blade of translucent light ahead of him, the two began to fight once again.

Lucemon chuckled, a slight smirk on his face. He grabbed Ken's bleeding shoulder and stabbed into him. Ken felt everything begin to fade. It felt over. His life flashed before his eyes as he forced himself to once more gaze into the wound in his stomach. The blade was completely lodged into him. Though he felt no pain whatsoever, it still caused him great pain to look…He felt the sharp, quickened beating of his heart suddenly stop, and the blood stopped flowing. Ken tried to look away, but doing so resulted in him seeing his arms with similar cuts. The blood no longer poured. "Learn to understand, child…" Lucemon's wild, psychotic blue eyes glistened in the same way Ken's had, "…then you will know, know what it's like to be a God…" The cuts looked more like... they were from a surgery of some sort...

"_What's going on...?!"_

"You aren't a pathetic human..."

Everything began to fade...

_"...and you never were!"_

There was a brief flash of red light. Ken's opened eyes saw where he was. There was an electrical display ahead of him, all he could see was red and blue. He felt cold. Various wires were attached to him, in his arms, neck, waist, ankles, knees, and the back of his head, actually _drilled _into the skin/bone. What had happened...?

Ken's tired eyes looked wearily around the room. He saw Arachnimon with her partner, covered in medical bandages. Then there was the man he had run into an eternity ago. He had dark blue hair and wore a trenchcoat. His eyes were darkened, and his skin was pale.

"Well, well," he said in a gruff voice, eyeing Ken with some kind of approval, "it seems that the project went just as planned..."

"Project...?" Ken parroted. "What project...?"

"Wait, boss," Arachnimon jeered, "tell him what he did to that Dejitaru Rebel guy!" They all shared a large laugh, while Ken sat in confusion and fear.

"What the hell are you talking about...?"

"You see, _Machina_..." the man started, "...it was like this..."

Ken stood, standing over the curled up Mummymon.

"Ken-chan!" Ryou and Chiisu made their way onto the scene, being "reluctantly escorted" by Janis. Ken stared back at them. His eyes were blank and dark. The ravenous qualities remained on his face.

"Alright, kid..." Janis urged quietly. "Just...step away from him...."

"KEN-KUN!!" Chiisu screamed. From the skin on Ken's arm emerged thousands of sharp, whispy drills. They stabbed into Ryou, first grabbing him by the shoulders, then arms, separating them by a single seam, drilling into the wound and pulling out each sinew, muscle, and bone. Then drilling into every other part of Ryou Akiyama's body, cutting and pulling out organs, blood, bones, first his rib cage, then his very heart. Then tearing into his lungs, the pink turning white and everything inside Ryou was suddenly all over the road.

"RYOU-KUUUUN!" Chiisu cried, tears coming into his eyes. Janis covered her ears. She wanted no more death. Enough was _enough _for the assassin.

_Then it made sense._

"Why…did you…Ken-chan…?!" Chiisu sighed with his tears falling into the blood. Janis stood,

"Damn you, CHAO-Fi... why must you make more innocent children suffer...?!" she pulled Sakura out of the air, then aimed it at the demonic Ken's face. His eyes were glazed over. "Please. Control your anger…control your fear. I don't know how it happened or why..."

"I have no fear…" He replied with a robot's voice. Ken leered at the girl assassin. Both of them faced each other with their blades. Janis sighed to herself, slowly lowering her blade and walking away.

She smiled feintly, "…new technology... you have made me obselete...someday, kid. Someday..."

"I…I killed…" Ken muttered, eyes wide with shock. The three laughed insanely,

"You thought less of 'The Digimon Kaiser'?!" Ken fell to the ground,

"You---_you made me do this!" _He screamed, tearing drills and mechanical miscellania out of his body, though it caused him great pain.

"No, but you have passed the test..." The man muttered as his two assisstants closed in on Ken, still lying in his own misery and electrical wiring. They held knives in one hand, syringes in the other.

"You know what to do..."

"Yes, sir." They snatched him by the shoulders... he couldn't breathe...

"Wha..._No...! **NO!**" _The world suddenly drew to an aprubt close as Ken lost consciousness.

_Where am I..._

_What am I doing here...?_

_Who am I...?_

_Am I real...?_

He opened his eyes, staring at a vast, beautiful horizon. Colours mixed together as he felt the cold rush of the wind in his face and hair. The ground was far, far below. He was falling with no parachute, but it was true freedom. For the first time in awhile, although cold, alone and falling into oblivion and death, he smiled. His fading blue eyes, tortured by the world around him, closed slightly. He titled his head down, staring at the distant land. He couldn't move. Wind and rain whipped his face. He didn't care. For the first time in his life, he felt alive.

A city rapidly approached. Not a single soul was in the streets. Instead of hitting the ground, though, something else happened...

A teenager with scruffy blue hair and a black robe had smiled at him, standing in the darkness.

"_Hello, Kaiser."_

Carrying an unconscious Ken in her arms, Janis followed Chiisu to his parent's apartment. The boy was curled up in a ball, his metal wings dangling helplessly in tatters.

"Lemme carry him!" Chiisu hollered. "I'm his friend! I can't trust you with him!"

Janis shrugged and handed the boy over, whom Chiisu immediately dropped.

"D--Dammit! He's heavy!" Janis picked him up again and lay him on Chiisu's bed, ignoring the tears in the sheets the wings had made. Ken looked pathetic. His eyes looked forced closed, as if he never wanted to wake again. Scars covered his arms and face. It looked almost as if he'd gone through some kind of surgery...

"W...wh..." Chiisu stammered as tears forced their way out of his eyes, "...what'd they do to him...?!"

Janis closed her eyes and then examined Ken's arm. Her eyes opened wide as her hand touched his worn skin.

"He's..." she stated slowly, "...he's _cold..."_

"He's not..._dead...is he?!"_

Janis shook her head. "No... I sense internal movement... but he..." she stopped herself, due to Chiisu's ominous, worried face. She shook her head,

"It's nothing." She was going to tell him that Ken had _no pulse, _either...

An awkward silence fell in the room.

"My name is Shirubi, by the by."

"Chiisu Kimura," he greeted. "Nice to meet you..."

"Ek…ir…" They all glanced at Ken, waking up slowly. "W-where am I?"

"Chii-kun's…" Janis, Shirubi glanced at him, putting her goggles around her head once more, turning to leave.

"HEY! Where're…?" She glanced at Ken once more, scowling,

"_You cannot be forgiven for what you've done_." Thus, she left. Ken didn't even know. Ken stared at the doorway she had exited through, hoping she'd return to add on to her statement, but she didn't. Ken was silent, then stood, fingering the scars along his arms, legs, everywhere.

"Do..." Chiisu began, "...they hurt?"

"Not at all, really," Ken sighed. He clenched his fist. A little tired. He strode over to the door.

"Ken-chan? Where are you going?!" Chiisu whispered, unable to really speak anymore due to what had happened. Ken strode out the door, grabbing the jacket and digivice. Then he smiled back at his co-hort, his _real_ smile,

"...I assure you, we shall meet again, Chiisu Kimura..."

"Ken-chan...wait..." He dashed out the door after him, but Ken was gone. He was again worried. His friend seemed to be a totally different person...

Shirubi stood at her door. Her head ran in circles. She had disbanded from CHAO-Fi, mainly because she was sick of it. All the killing, all of the pain... Memories of all her victims replayed again and again in her mind.

"Were they all like...when Ken killed him...?"

She felt a tinge of guilt, and opened the door to her apartment.

"What the _hell_ did they do to that boy...?"

But when she opened the door, a familiar face greeted her.

"Hello, Shi. Feeling better today?"

Ken and Lucemon fought continuously, each movement ending up in a stalemate.

"You're good...real good..." Ken muttered.

"Too bad must destroy you, Deus ex," he was suddenly thrown backward. Lucemon was shocked. Ken laughed insanely once more,

"There'll be no desroying of me, that's for SURE!" He slammed Redeemer forward, but Lucemon caught it with his hands! Ken snatched the blade from his opponent, but Lucemon tossed it aside.

"You obviously don't understand what happened, do you?"

"Shut up and fight!" Ken shouted, but Redeemer disappeared. Lucemon laughed,

"You need time. You're not used to your new self. I shall see you again, _Deus ex Machina." _And with that, he left and Ken was alone. Alone and confused.

"...New self...?" He stared at his hand, tired but not in pain.

Shirubi stared in shock.

"_Y---YOU!" _

It was Osamu.

"I have a proposition for you..." he stated. "You want to disband, don't you?"

She nodded slowly, readying to summon her blade.

"Well..." he started, "...its like this. If you disband, you'd come back anyways."

"If this is all about that stupid contract..."

"It is," he spoke with a strange smile.

"That contract means nothing to me..."

"_Really _now?!" He shouted while he waved his hand violently. Shirubi's body seized up. She couldn't move. Her arms were fastened tightly to her sides. Osamu drew nearer to her.

"Let's see..." he said, reaching out to her and touching her face softly, "How did that contract go again... oh yes... that's right. That as your sworn duty as a makenshi and CHAO-Fi, you, Shirubi Janis Karaki, must serve and protect the leader of the organization, the great Lord Chaos. Correct?"

She closed her eyes and replied with a scowl. His fingers ran across her lips,

"So if you disband, it doesn't matter. You'd just come back to me."

"_You?!"_

"Haven't figured it out yet?" His face was, once again, about a centimetre away from her face, eyes maniacal and desiring.

_"I am Chaos."_

In a desparate attempt, the girl managed to look away from his eyes, break away from his invisible grip, and dash as fast as she could.

She'd never, ever stop running. His eyes burned into what she could call a fragment of a soul. She heard his voice, laughing away and screaming after her,

"_Don't you DARE forget, Shirubi! You **BELONG TO ME!**"_

"Ken-chan..." Chiisu began, typing a letter to his former accomplice, "I just wanted to say that I'm kinda worried about you... but I'm sure you'll be okay...right? After all, you _DO_ have Osamu around, ne? Anyway, I'd like to say you won't be hearing from me in awhile... I'm going to New York! Whee! Ain't it exciting?! My dad got a job there, somewhere in Albany, or something... I haven't really studied anything about the United States. I hope I know enough English to get around. I'm trying my hardest not to say the F-word, like Ryou, Worm-chan, Upa, and you told me to, but I do occasionally say 'hell' and 'damn', but it doesn't really go past that.

Look, I know you really couldn't control what you were doing when you did that to Akiyama-san. I blame the Fighters... Shirubi...er...Janis told me, though, that she had a 'trick up her sleeve' to deal with it, so I think we can trust her. I sent Upamon to go back to the Dejitaru and report any activity, but thus far, nothing. Oh, speaking of the devil, Upamon evolved! Like Sting-chan! He turned into this... armidillo-like thingy called Armadimon. I think there's a clothes company in America called Armadi... I dunno. Ha ha... I'm really not looking forward to living with Christi, she always picks on me...

Rr.... Well, pal. I'll see ya in a couple of years.

Sincerely...:" Chiisu hesitated, "No, not sincerely... how about..." He smiled, then typed:

Your friend..." he thought again,

"Your friend for life,

Chiisu Kimura."

"Whew..." He sighed, leaning back in his chair. That was the second last thing on his list of things to do before he moved. The last one was to actually leave. He examined the e-mail, then began packing his clothes.

"Hey, baka!" The brown-haired, blond-highlighted, green-eyed Christi Kimura stormed into the room, "You done?! We gotta go!"

"But Chris-chan..."

"No EXCUSES!" Christi screeched, then she saw the laptop on the floor of the near empty room, "Ah..." she sighed irritably, "you're still messing with MY computer?! That's IT! PACK UP, NOW!"

"Christi, I am...DON'T TOUCH THAT!" Christi had pulled the plug and shut off the power of the computer... before Chii-kun had sent his e-mail to Ken! He stared, horrified and angry at his sister, and she merely stormed out of the room, screaming, "PACK UP, SHRIMP! WE'RE LEAVING IN FIVE MINUTES!" Chiisu stared at what remained of his room, emptiness, and sighed, "Well...he'll remember me... I hope anyway. Besides, not a lot can happen in four years." He smiled, then grabbed his three suitcases and ran out the door after Christi.

"...Right?"

"Ken-chan? What're you doing?" Wormmon asked while Ken was furiously digging through his closet, which then he replied, "I think I should tell Osa-chan...about the whole Dejitaru mess."

"Why?!"

"I just...don't like lying to people."

"You weren't lying."

"It felt like I was..."

"Ken-chan...if you wanna ruin your secret..."

"Well, putting it that way..." Ken smiled deviously, sitting back in his closet, putting on the jacket that he had gotten when the mess began, relaxing for the first time in awhile, "...it's always nice to keep some things to yourself, ne? I mean...I'm sure I can keep quiet about the whole thing. I like it all being obscure."

"Good resoning, kid."

"Stop calling me kid."

"What do I call you then?"

"...I dunno. How about Ken, just...Ken."

"Alright, Ken.....chan." He glared at the little bug momentarily, then Worm-chan shrugged,

"It's natural! I'm too used to calling you Ken-CHAN!"

"...bug..."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Ken sat up and screeched into Worm-chan's face,

"BUG!" Worm-chan screamed back,

"STUPID KID, KEN-CHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!"

"Wait a sec..." Ken thought a moment, "...what happened to Koushiro, Ruki, and Taichi?"

"Hmm...odd. I haven't heard from them..."

"Wait...I know. Koushiro and Taichi told me that they had to go back to the Dejitaru...and Ruki's somewhere in America for a card game tournament."

"Oh...I thought they'd be dead..."

"Yah...they were a bunch of stupid kids..."

"_You're _a stupid kid..."

"SHUT UP, BUG!"

_I don't think I should tell anyone about this... I haven't been feeling any pain recently... and these scars aren't healing. At all... They wouldn't understand... _

_What the hell happened at CHAO-Fi...?_

Ken decided he should've told Osa-chan about it, to an extent of acknowledging it happened. His brother had just gotten out of school (insert editor note: "riiight....!") when Ken came running up (he had the day off, for the teachers STILL thought he was sick.) Ken had a backpack in his hands, and he and Osa-chan sat at the techno café Ken had been at when he met Ruki, Taichi, Kou, and... Janis. It was near silent, and, surprisingly, _normal _looking people sat around. It looked like a normal, everyday café, even though Ken knew what it was at night.

"So, what'd you wanna tell me?" Osa-chan asked, leaning back in his chair. Ken hesitated,

"Uhh...I don't really know where to start..." Suddenly, the green bug, Worm-chan, emerged from the backpack screaming,

"KEN-CHAAAAAN! I CAN'T BREATHE IN THAT THING!!" Wormmon stopped yelling and noticed Osamu.

"_GOOD LORD!_" Osa screamed and recoiled, "Wha-What the hell is that?!"

"This...is Wormmon," Ken introduced. Osamu looked at the digimon, then at Ken,

"So-So you're..."

"Yep, the Gaurdians." Ken smiled, envisioning the flag Chiisu and Upamon had created.

An hour passed, Ken explaining nearly everything, except the places he went crazy. That was to remain obscure.

"Whoa..." Osamu sighed, "You had guns?"

"Yah..." Ken replied with a sigh and a nod, "...but somehow they fused into my arms. Sorry I can't let you see 'em..."

"Nah, it's alright..." they sat in the awkward silence, Worm-chan happily eating some ramen.

"So...why'd you keep this from us?"

Ken shrugged,

"I dunno, I guess it just never came up..." Again, silence. Ken decided then to ask for advice,

"Hey, Osa...?"

"Yah?"

"I...haven't really been feeling like myself lately..." This time, Osamu shrugged,

"Well, Ken-chan, it must just be a phase. Believe me, I know how you feel... Besides, I know my brother would never get into any trouble he couldn't handle, ne?" Ken hesitated, then nodded with a fake smile.

"Right."

With a laugh, the two walked out.

"Well, I had better meet up with Shirubi..." Osa-chan lied. Thus, the two walked in different directions. Ken began to cross the street, when he heard the dreaded sound once more...

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing..._

Ken immediately stopped walking.

"Hmm?" Worm-chan asked, "What's wrong?" Ken stared at the ground, for he saw something no one else could.

"What...?" Ken questioned quietly.

_Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing..._

"KEN-CHAN! WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?!" Still, Ken didn't listen, and what happened next would haunt him for the rest of his life.

A shadow, a shadow of himself... but he looked different... like he had when he had defeated Millenniumon, the crazy, insane Ken...

"_KEN-CHAN! WATCH OUT!"_ Osa-chan's voice pierced through his daze, and all of a sudden, he felt a great force against him, then falling to the ground.

"W...What...What happened...?" He glanced at Worm-chan, who was unconscious next to him. The side of Ken's face was scratched, but not bleeding. It was nothing, however, compared to what had happened to the one that saved him. He heard voices, _quiet, worried voices_. An ambulence suddenly appeared, and by getting up onto his knees, Ken saw the terrible, horrifying, mind-bendingly immoral sight. "N...._No_..." His eyes widened, the tears coming fast, his skin turning pale in both shock and sadness. Osamu...was hit. Terribly... _dying_. Ken had seen many things, and a few people, die, but nothing like this... oh, no, nothing like this. His brother had been hit... killed... bleeding, only clinging to his life by a single thread. "O-Osa-chan!" Ken found the strength to stand, and tried to chase after the ambulence. Tears streamed from his face as he screamed, "_OSAAAAAAAAAA-CHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!"_

_I had never really been that close to Osa..._

_Why... why couldn't it have been me!?_

_WHY?!_

_WHY, GOD, WHY?!_

About a half an hour later, Osamu was in the hospital, but his condition was not improving. Nothing was working.

"A—Sumimasen?" The girl, came up to the front desk, not looking too happy, not to mention well. She looked tired and sick. "Could you tell me where Osamu Ichijouji is...?" The serious-looking receptionist replied blankly,

"Room 12, but don't get your hopes up..." Shirubi thanked her, and ran as fast as she could.

"Osamu-sempai?" He immediately recognized her voice.

"Come in, Shi....chan..." the voice replied, and she stepped in quietly.

"So...it's that bad, ne...?"

"Yah..." He replied with a calm sigh. Shi clenched her fists,

"C'mon, Osa-chan! You can't die!" He put a hand on her cheek,

"Shi-chan...you're the only person I need to see...before...well..." Her eyes welled up with tears, but she tried hard to ignore them,

"Osa-chan...NO! YOU WON'T DIE!" She screamed, "...you...you can't..."

"Shirubi Karaki, you can't always hold back your weaknesses and sadness...all your tears and anger...I promise..."

"Huh..." She sniffed, wiping her eyes.

"I promise...I will come back to you..."

"Osa...Osamu-san, wait!"

"Good....bye...Shi....chan...." He closed his eyes, then whispered his final words, "....I...love...you..."

The heart rate machine suddenly emitted a straight tone. "Os...Osa-chan..." she couldn't fight her tears anymore. Too much had happened, and now Osamu Ichijouji was dead. This also meant the contract was obselete...and that meant...

"_OSA-CHAN!_" She screamed through her tears, falling to the floor. She was ill, and soon, she may have been in the same condition Osamu was. A nurse passing by the room saw her, coughing up blood and collapsed on the floor, and she was immediately rushed to another area...

If Chaos...Osamu...was really, truly dead...

The contract would be obselete...

Meaning...

_She was obselete..._

"How's he doing...?" Otoko, Ken's father, stood by his wife and son, who sat in the waiting room, asked.

"I'm afraid he's..." Otoko closed his eyes, then asked,

"And Ken?"

"A few minor scrapes, but he's okay..." The doctor coughed, looking at Ken oddly. The three adults stared at the boy who had a bandage on the side of his mouth, but he was okay, like the doctor had said.

"It's actually strange... he should really have at least a..._bleeding injury..._"

Ken found no other alternative than to stare blankly at the floor beneath. A weird feeling, a shiver, came across him, making him look up. The girl who had rescued him with Chiisu was being wheeled to an Emergency Room, the several doctors saying things like "_NOT ANOTHER ONE!_"

Then their eyes met. No words could be exchanged, but there was something about that precise moment that told him life would never return to what it had been. She reached her arm out to him, but then the moment ended, and she was gone.

"Who..._who was that_...?" He asked himself.

Thus, the Gaurdians ended. And everything was over... _No..._

_So much has happened. _

Chiisu sat on the airplane, regretting that he didn't send the e-mail, and his sister nudging him every five minutes since she was asleep.

_Too much has changed. _

_Life was once boring... useless before this began. _

_It all seemed like... a game..._

"Ken-kun..." Chiisu sighed, "...please be okay."

"_Uh..." Everyone in the car hesitated._

"_Is it...some sort of game?" Chii glanced at Ryou, Ryou glanced at Ken, who had suddenly came up to say-calmly-,_

"_Yes. Y-Yes, Kimura-san, it's a game."_

_Ryou and Chii glanced at him and each other again, and the three of them nodded weakly. _

Shirubi stood next to a row of gravestones, marked

KOUSHIRO IZUMI

TAICHI YAGAMI

RUKI MAKINO

OSAMU ICHIJOUJI

She had a boquet of white flowers in her hands, then sets them down by Osa-chan's grave.

"I'll never stop running," she told Osamu, "...I'll never stop running for you..._okay_...?" Always screwing everything up, always in the wrong, Shirubi began to run, and she ran like she never had before.

_I should've known it wasn't a game. _

_To the contrary, it was 100 percent real. _

_Osamu..._

Ken, alone and confused, trudged along. He felt empty. His body was tired and cold. He felt weakened, like the world was pressuring him to do _something... _

_...It's weird..._

Ken turned, to see the three that were always together, Arachnimon, Mummymon (who's eyehole was completely unnoticeable by then), and the blue haired man.

_...I can't really feel anything anymore. _

_It's like... I've become something else... _

_Someone who I don't want to be..._

_I just live out my life..._

_However..._

He stared at the group, and hesitated. Arachni says quietly,

"Well...are you ready?"

More hesitation...

_It's like..._

_I don't know..._

_Like I'm afraid to grow up... or something like that..._

_I think I grew up._

_I'm not really Ken anymore._

_Ken is dead._

CHAO-Fi stood ahead.

_He died in battle. He died when Osamu did. _

_I linger around mainly because... I've become this _thing....

_A heartless machine..._

_I know I sound crazy, but it's true..._

_I lost who I was. Who I am..._

_What do I do now, you ask?_

Metal bracers were attached to his wrists, neck, and ankles, and he wore an outfit much like Janisu's. He had been brought in front of the crowd of Fighters, all of them staring at him with mixed looks. His hair was once more sticking up on end, and he wore the glasses Janis had given him. Arachnimon glanced at him. Ken stared at the ground, he didn't know how to respond to becoming a Fighter, more accurately, the second human Fighter in history.

_I dunno. _

_I'm never growing up._

_I'm never becoming an adult. _

_Ever..._

_Why? _

Ken smiled, the same way that he had when he had gone insane many times before.

_...Because I guess its time for the Kaiser to shine... _

To be Continued...

AFTERWORD:

Muahahahahhahahahahahhahahahahhahahahahahahhahahhahahahahahahahahhaha!

Finally... I got it done! I don't really like it... it's a tad rushed... But I tried my best (and succeeded) in making the underlying elements and plot devices for DC02 esoteric. Some things only really should exist in my head, but I wrote them. Why? Because I am lazy. Very lazy...

And crazy, too.

And does _anybody _know _WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO KEN?!_

I never do this anymore... but I think I'll bring back a good tradition... (with my old, defunct story ULTCO, I did this for awhile)

REVIEW TIME, BOYS und GIRLS!!!! : ) Muahahahha! (cough)

I:

Character Development

12345

(1 ha...ha...ha...puke, 5 This person's related to you...right? WHAT?! They don't EXIST?! WTF...?!)

Favourite Character... and why? (big emphasis on WHY here)

Second Favourite Character and why?

II

Plot

12345

(1 there WAS no plot, you deadbeat! : ( , 5 wha---?! Its over?!)

Favourite scene(s) and why:

Second Favourite Scene(s) and why:

Any memorable quotes?

What were your thoughts as you finished the last few sentences and reached "to be continued"?

III

Misc. Quesions.

Uhh...Yeah...That part in Part IV... (you know...!)...thoughts?:

Should I compile supplementary materials? (art, character designs, CD, etc?)

Should I get off my ass, spend about $800 on Code Red and toilet paper (don't ask... --;;;) and write the sequel story, DC02?

What were your thoughts on:

Ken

Janis/Shirubi

Osamu

Ken's Parents

Ryou

Other crap you need to say to me before I die from over-caffienation (aka: too much sodie pop?)

Alright, see you all later, oompa-loompahs...Uhh... Go away! (Shall I write the Epilogue?)

-s-T-e-R-e-O- (your deadbeat writer pal disturbed psycho sociopath...uhh...yeah! COOKIES!)


End file.
